Naruto: Fūjin & Raijin Shippūden
by Durza II
Summary: Naruto: Wind God & Thunder God Hurricane Chronicles. Tsunade forbids Jiraiya to take Naruto training as he is needed in Konoha. Instead she asks an old friend to help, with Naruto and with another genin whose life may be in danger, Hyūga Hinata.
1. Chapter 1: A New Beginning

Two people were sat opposite each other. They were both leaf ninja. One was young looking, possibly thirty, with long blonde hair, a lean figure, and very large breasts. The other was quite old with long, spiky white hair that was tied in a ponytail, a weather-beaten face, dimples that suggested he smiled a lot, tall and strongly built.

"I'm sorry, Jiraiya" Tsunade said for the fifth time. "But you are needed by Konoha. We still haven't recovered our military strength, something that will take a couple of years, and in the meantime we need strong shinobi present at all times. We need all of our resources and I'm afraid that includes you. The entire Council voted for it and I'm afraid I agreed. You cannot leave with Naruto to train him."

"You do realise that Akatsuki will come here looking for him?" Jiraiya pointed out. His voice was flat and his face impassive. He was in one of his rarely serious moods. "On the move, Akatsuki would have a hard time finding him and I could protect him, but here in Konoha you might as well roll out the red carpet. If Akatsuki comes, the Council will vote to release the boy into their custody and you know it. He won't be safe unless I leave with him."

"I understand what you're saying Jiraiya," Tsunade snapped. "I'm not an idiot-"

"Could have fooled me," Jiraiya interrupted.

"-and I'm working on a solution that will suite everyone," Tsunade continued as if Jiraiya had never spoken. Jiraiya sighed and shook his head. It was always foolish to argue with Tsunade. Everything was against him. He just had to trust in her decision. But if it wasn't satisfactory he would have no choice but to act against the will of the Council and the Hokage, and take the boy with him anyway. Tsunade read his final decision instantly. She was the only one, apart from Orochimaru perhaps, who knew him so well. But even then there had always been a wild side to Jiraiya, just as there had always been a cold and calculating side to Orochimaru, and a compassionate side to Tsunade herself. Jiraiya's unpredictability had always made him a dangerous warrior and a force to be reckoned with, like a wild animal. She couldn't allow things to escalate that far or else the situation would truly get nasty. She sighed inwardly. Why had she ever let that kid convince her to become the Hokage?

XXX

The kunoichi looked at the gates of Konoha. It had been such a long time since she had seen them. A smile flickered across her lips. Unbidden memories leapt up at her, which she pushed to one side decisively. This was no time for nostalgia. She looked at the guards by the gate. Although they were chatting idly and letting civilians pass by unhindered, she could tell that they were paying intent attention to who exactly was going in and out. They were alert and ready. They were very good, for chunin.

She walked up to them and handed one of them her documentation. He read it carefully while the other gazed at her intently. After only a few seconds, in which she was sure her documents hadn't been read in much detail, they were handed back to her and she was allowed to pass. The chunin went back to their conversation and ignored her completely; despite the fact that they knew she was a ninja and a strong one at that. They were either very good or very relaxed. Recent events taken into consideration, it was probably the former.

The Hokage was ready to receive her when she got to the mansion. The place was a beehive of activity. Ninja were running here and there, either delivering mission reports or collecting new mission specs, or as was often the case, both. The Hokage's office was littered with paperwork; most of it looking like it had been there for a while. The kunoichi smiled. It seemed like Tsunade hadn't developed a taste for paperwork since the last time they had met. The Hokage gave her assistant orders not to be disturbed until she said otherwise. Only then did the two female ninja look at each other. Both set of beautiful faces were blank.

"It's been a long time, Tsunade-sensei," the kunoichi finally said. Tsunade nodded for her to take a seat and Tsunade herself slumped gratefully into her own.

"That is has," Tsunade agreed. "I'm glad you agreed to help me."

"Hey," the kunoichi said, "I owe you one." Tsunade nodded both in agreement and thanks. "So what's this favour you want?"

Tsunade opened a drawer on her desk and took out a thin folder. She slid it across the desk toward the kunoichi. The kunoichi opened it slowly. Inside was a picture of a girl. The girl looked around twelve years when the picture was taken. She had dark blue to black hair and very distinctive large lavender eyes with no pupils. She was a Hyūga, then. She had the trademark pale skin, but unlike other Hyūga the kunoichi had seen, she didn't have the imposing, almost arrogant stare. It was quite the opposite, in fact. She looked quite meek. The kunoichi quickly read through the Hyūga's profile. Everything was there, from her personal history and mission history to physical and psychological profiles. It wasn't an encouraging profile, especially for a Hyūga.

"What's this favour?" the kunoichi asked again.

"Hyūga Hinata," Tsunade began, "is in danger. As the heir of the Hyūga Clan, a lot was expected of her. But it seems she inherited all of her mother's qualities and none of her father's because she is quite shy and timid. As a result, after years of trying to beat it out of her, her father finally abandoned her to Konoha's Academy. She did not excel. The final straw came when she lost to her cousin, Hyūga Neji, during the preliminary rounds of the Chunin Exams.

Since then, a plot has slowly been in the making among two of the lesser Houses of the Main family and certain Houses of the Branch family. This plot has been to convince every Hyūga that the Clan would be better off without Hinata as the heir. Already her father has set her aside and is training the younger sister, Hyūga Hanabi, to be the heir, but at the moment this hasn't been announced as fact.

These same factions that are plotting toward Hyūga Hinata's downfall feel that the house that has been ruling the Hyūga Clan for decades needs to step aside and the governing politics need to be changed. Removing Hyūga Hinata would mean there are only two remaining members of the current ruling House. Hyūga Hanabi will become an active ninja, and therefore eliminating her will be relatively easy once she starts going on more dangerous missions. Hyūga Hinata is already an acknowledged failure and so her death during a mission will come as no surprise.

Another stage of this plot has been to push the Clan Leader to place the **Hyūga Sōke no Juinjutsu**; the Hyuga Main Family's Cursed Seal Technique, also known as the **Caged Bird Seal,** on Hyūga Hinata and acknowledge her inability to be the Clan heir and an appropriate Leader. The Hyūga Clan has a rigid code, and one of them is that all members who aren't from the Main family are to be branded with the Seal. A second part to this is that only one child born in the Main family can be chosen to be the potential Clan heir and any other following children are to be branded with the Seal. In the case of Hyūga Hinata and Hyūga Hanabi, this should have been done when Hyūga Hanabi turned the age of three. But by that time Hyūga Hinata was eight years old and her father had realised that she had none of the Hyūga's genius or strength. And so he postponed branding his second daughter until he had made a decision to which child he would brand. Now, five years later, its clear Hyūga Hanabi is more talented and if pushing the Clan Leader to brand Hyūga Hinata doesn't work, they will simply eliminate her on a mission. That will only leave Hyūga Hiashi, the current Clan Leader, as the only member of the ruling House. A lone man against the entire might of the Hyūga – even though he is the Clan leader and very powerful – will die. Simple.

I have gathered this information using my ANBU and several informants within the Hyūga, but the majority has come from the Clan Leader, Hyūga Hiashi, himself. He fears that the Hyūga are descending down a dangerous path. He came to me and between us we have realised that the only way to save the ruling House and stop the Hyūga from descending down this road is to preserve a member of the ruling house; namely Hyūga Hinata. Hyūga Hiashi has asked and I have agreed that Hyūga Hinata needs to be taken away for a few years until things settle down. With Konoha still recovering from the recent invasion by Sunagakure and Otogakure, political in-fighting is the last thing we have time to deal with. However, the invasion was to our advantage as every capable ninja has been drafted to work. The Hyūga have little time to plot when they can barely keep awake.

Hyūga Hinata needs to be taken to safety, but more than that she needs to be taken somewhere where her power can develop without hindrance. I have watched her. She is not untalented, just afraid. After a few years she will hopefully be strong enough to stand against any plot against her. The Clan Leader will announce Hyūga Hanabi in a few days as the official heir. Hyūga Hinata needs to be gone by then."

The kunoichi digested all of this in silence. Her heart felt heavy just thinking about all this mess involving Clans. Poor girl. She let out a slow breath and looked down at Hyūga Hinata's profile. "So you want me to take care of her?"

"After a fashion," Tsunade said. She took out a piece of folded paper from a drawer. The kunoichi received it and opened it. Inside was a picture of an old looking woman and a few statistics. "This is Hyūga Hinata," Tsunade said. The kunoichi looked up, her eyebrows raised in confusion. "This is Hinata's grandmother, her mother's mother. Decades ago she fled the Hyūga because she didn't like the fact that the Hyūga had lost their freedom and joined Konoha. Joining Konoha was making the Hyūga more paranoid and cruel. She fled fast and far so that she wouldn't be found and executed by the Hyūga. She managed to do it. I found her a few years ago, before I became the Hokage, when I was still travelling with Shizune. She owes me her life and I'm pretty sure she would want to help Hinata once she hears the entire story. I want you to take Hinata to her grandmother. As well as being crankier and quicker to angry than I am, she is one hell of a shinobi. Hinata could learn a lot from her grandmother."

The kunoichi frowned. "So all you want me to do is to transport this girl safely to …" the kunoichi checked the paper for the current location of the Hyūga grandmother and continued, "The mountains and stay around for a few years? Sounds boring and time-consuming." Tsunade sighed.

"Basically, yeah, but that's only one part of the job." The kunoichi's interest was stoked. "I want you to escort _two_ genin to the western mountains. One of them is Hyūga Hinata, for the reasons I have just outlined. The other is also a kid whose life is in danger, but from a more sinister group." Tsunade got out a second folder and slid it to the kunoichi. The kunoichi opened it and she froze. Was this some kind of joke? Why was Tsunade giving her a profile on a legendary ninja who had died long ago? But then she focused on the image and saw a few discrepancies. This wasn't _that_ ninja, then. But who could it be? She looked back up at Tsunade. The young looking woman was now truly slumped in her chair, her eyes showing her true age.

"The second genin I want you to personally take care of and train intensively is the boy the Fourth Hokage used to seal the Kyuubi no Yoko in; Uzumaki Naruto."

XXX

Naruto looked at the picture of Team Kakashi for the hundredth time that day. He had failed everyone. Chouji and Neji were still in the ICU – Intensive Care Unit. Kiba was recovering but Akamaru was still unconscious. Only Shikamaru wasn't hurt badly. Naruto had recovered with only two nights spent in the hospital, thanks to the Kyuubi. Naruto growled at that thought. The Kyuubi. Even with its power he hadn't been strong enough to retrieve Sasuke. What good was it then? Jiraiya had tried to console him yesterday by saying that Naruto hadn't even mastered a thousandth of the Kyuubi's power. But how could he master it? Who would teach him? Jiraiya had already told him that they couldn't travel together anymore. The Perverted Hermit was needed in Konoha. What could Naruto do? He had to get stronger!

"_Are you going to leave me, too, Naruto?"_ Naruto started as the remembered voice reverberated through his skull. Sakura. It was their conversation when he had woken up in the hospital. It had been painful for both of them.

XXX

_Naruto watched as Tsunade walked out of the room__. Sakura stood by the door. She didn't look up at him. Tears were streaming down her face. Her green eyes were glazed over in pain._

"_Sakura-chan," he began but she cut him off._

"_Don't worry about it, Naruto," she said. "You did your best. You nearly got killed doing it. I couldn't ask for more. Sasuke was just stronger than you." Naruto's heart twinged at that remark. Sasuke was stronger than him? Sakura saw it like that, it seemed._

"_What's this about going away?" Sakura asked. "Are you going to leave me, too, Naruto?"_

"_I have to go, Sakura-chan," Naruto said, trying to reason with her. "The Perverted Hermit knows his jutsu. He's going to make me strong! I can bring back Sasuke!"_

"_Are you going to leave me, too, Naruto?" Sakura asked again. Naruto had the bad feeling that she hadn't heard him. Had she finally cracked under the emotional upheaval?_

"_I have to, Sakura-chan," Naruto whined. "I made a promise to you. I don't go back on my word. That's my __**Nindo**__!"_

"_I don't care!" Sakura shouted__. She walked toward the door._

"_Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted at her. He could barely move. He had just woken up in the hospital. "Please!"_

"_No, Naruto!" Sakura shouted as she opened the door. "First Sasuke, and now you! Go ahead! Leave me! I don't care about you, your promise or your stupid __**Nindo**__! Just leave! I wish I'd never met you! Monster!" Sakura ran out of the room and closed the door behind her with a bang before running down the corridor. Naruto heard her footsteps getting fainter and fainter…_

XXX

Naruto sighed. He hadn't seen Sakura since then. He had tried to find her but she was nowhere to be seen. He had gone to her house, once, but Sakura's mother had screamed at him to leave so loud that it had actually scared him. He had to live with the fact that Sakura didn't like him anymore. That had triggered a sense of depression that Naruto hadn't felt in a while. She didn't acknowledge him anymore.

Naruto stood up and stretched. He was supposed to be leaving in a few hours. Tsunade had told him last night that she had found someone else to train him. Suddenly the prospect didn't seem as alluring as it had before. He realised he had formed few but very strong bonds in Konoha. Did he really want to leave that behind? Was Sasuke worth it? As he thought this, the image of two red eyes, with three tomoe in each pupil, flashed through his mind. But as the image grew he knew he wasn't thinking of Sasuke. It was Itachi. Itachi was a member of Akatsuki. Naruto remembered what Itachi had done to Sasuke when they had met what seemed so long ago, when Perverted Hermit and he were looking for old lady Tsunade. Was it that eye technique that Itachi used responsible for Sasuke's defection? The thought was more comfortable than any other option. But Naruto had looked into Sasuke's burning red eyes. Sasuke was, quite simply, mad. The fire of vengeance inside his heart had extinguished everything else. Naruto knew that with the Curse Seal in effect, Sasuke was more aggressive, so it was possible that the look in Sasuke's eyes had just been magnified. But Naruto remembered Sasuke's face when they had fought on top of the hospital. It was an accumulation of things, he guessed. Sasuke had reached breaking point the moment he had met Itachi again.

Naruto lifted up his backpack and turned to look in the mirror. For the next three years he would literally have all his worldly possessions on him. His apartment was being given to someone else seeing as accommodation was still scarce in Konoha, what with most of the destruction caused by the invasion was still being repaired. He'd had to sell everything he owned, which wasn't much to begin with. Even his orange jumpsuit had to go so he could have more money on the road. Now all he had to for clothes was a standard Konoha black uniform – a long sleeved t-shirt, black trousers that went down to mid-shin, bandages that tied the ends of his trousers to his shins so they didn't flap and make noise, black _zori_ (sandals), a shuriken pouch on his left thigh, a kunai pouch on his right thigh, a weapons pouch that went all along the back of his belt instead of just resting on his right bum cheek – but instead of a vest (since he wasn't a chunin or jonin), Naruto wore instead a long-sleeved jacket that had scroll pockets attached. All in all, he cut a rather poor figure. All of the items he had bought, which were second hand, hadn't been in ninja fashion for years. Maybe if he'd looked little more imposing, it would have been fine, but as it was he looked like a kid dressed up like a ninja.

He sighed. He might as well get a move on, then.

XXX

Hinata was shaking. This had come as the final blow. She had started to recover, but this had pushed her down, hard. Her father was sending her away because she was too weak to play the Game the Hyūga were good at; politics. If she had been a talented heir like her father desired, she might have stayed, but as it was she was just too much of a liability.

Events had moved fast once she had come back from her mission. She'd been injured so she'd gone straight to the hospital for medical attention. A poison was making its way slowly through her bloodstream and it needed to be expunged. The process had been by no means soft, and for someone of Hinata's sensitivity it had been much worse. When her father and the Hokage came to visit her she had already been trembling from exhaustion and pain. She saw the flicker of disappointment in her father's eyes but wasn't surprised when he said nothing. He had already started focusing on Neji and Hanabi more, but still, for a Hyūga to be in such a condition … it was unthinkable. Besides, the Hokage was present. He couldn't afford to say anything in case Hokage-sama disagreed. Hyūga matters stayed with the Hyūga. She tried not to make it like she noticed but already her trembling had increased.

Quickly and efficiently, the Hokage had outlined the problem and the suggested solution. Hinata knew Tsunade-sama had tried to be affectionate, but her father's silence was all that grabbed her attention. Why was he just standing there, saying nothing? Surely he had something to say about this? He couldn't just let his daughter go. But Hiashi had kept silent, his gaze locked on Hinata.

"Well?" the Hokage had finally asked. Hinata could do nothing but nod. What else could she do? The Hokage left then with Hiashi to get what Hinata would need and get her ready. It was a bonus that Hinata was in the hospital. Her things could be brought and she could leave, well away from the Hyūga Compound. Her father had stopped momentarily by the door. He turned to look at her. She peeked up at him from behind her hair. After a second he turned round and left. She slowly realised this was the last time she would see him for a long while, if ever, and he hadn't even said anything. She broke down into tears then and there.

She became conscious of her surroundings once more a few hours later when her stuff was all in a bag in front of her. A change of clothes was beside her so that she wouldn't have to wear her bloodstained ones. She hadn't even seen these arrive. She looked up and there was a woman standing in front of her. The woman wore an _umanori_ (divided skirt) and underneath it she wore normal ninja trousers. She had on a short sleeved t-shirt, a fishnet shirt made of fine metal mesh and a black jonin vest. On top of it all she wore a brown trench coat. Her hitai-ate, her forehead protector, didn't have any village symbol. Rather, it was personalized. The kanji on it read "**Hiarashi**", or "Fire Tempest". The kunoichi's steel, the imposing feeling of her gaze, reminded Hinata a lot of her second examiner in the Chunin Exams, Mitarashi Anko. But this woman seemed far more capable and deadly. It was a frightening feeling.

But then the woman's gaze seemed to mellow as she took in Hinata. Her gaze became soft. The woman came to Hinata and started talking softly. Hinata couldn't find the energy to respond, but it seemed response was not necessary. Hinata was slowly helped out of her clothes, into a shower in the next room, and then into her fresh and simple clothes. Hinata found her affection for this woman soaring. If she was going to go away with this woman, she decided she didn't mind at all.

XXX

"Hey, kid, wait up!"

Naruto looked around and saw the perverted hermit running in a lopping run toward him. He couldn't help but smile. The Perverted Hermit was a good man, he suddenly decided. It was a shame he couldn't go with him.

"What is it, Ero-Sennin?" he asked.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?" Jiraiya shouted as his face went red. "It scares away the girls, Naruto. You should have learnt that by now. What kind of teacher are people going to think I am if I don't teach a young man the fundamentals?"

"A perverted one," Naruto replied.

"You are hopeless, kid," Jiraiya mourned.

"What did you want anyway?" Naruto asked as if suddenly remembering. "I'm on my way to meet this new teacher I'm supposed to train with. Tsunade-baa-chan said this person is good."

"Not as good as me," Jiraiya scoffed as he thought about the kunoichi Tsunade had assigned. But he had to admit that the kunoichi was an excellent ninja. He knew that she would do her best to teach Naruto and that Naruto in turn could learn a lot about being an excellent ninja. But it wasn't enough. Akatsuki was after Naruto, and so Naruto needed to be more than excellent. He needed to be the best. And that was why he had snuck off on a Council meeting to bid the kid farewell and give him a gift.

"Then why don't you teach me? Eh?" Naruto demanded with his arms folded across his chest, his face petulant. Jiraiya sighed. Classic Naruto. He was gonna miss the kid.

"I already told you why, idiot. I have to help protect Konoha and take a load of missions … jeez, it's gonna be so much hard work. I will barely have enough time for a decent drinking competition with Gamabunta!" Jiraiya suddenly mourned his loss. Damnable Tsunade and her demands.

"Anyway, kid," Jiraiya continued, "since I can't train you, I've gone for the next best thing. Now before you start asking stupid questions and moaning, sign your name here just like you did with the Toad Contract." Jiraiya gave Naruto a small scroll and Naruto bit his thumb, wrote his name and gave his fingerprints. "The seals are Tiger, Ram, Hare, Serpent and Dragon." Jiraiya's voice suddenly went serious and his gaze sharpened. Naruto suddenly gulped. "Those seals summon a giant scroll, like the one I have now, and this scroll contains knowledge. I will not tell you what knowledge or anything else, but I want you to summon this scroll as soon as you get to your safety area. I want you to study this scroll and learn everything you can in the next three years. If you do that, then you have a chance of fighting an Akatsuki like you said you would back when we were looking for Tsunade. You cannot afford to be weaker than your enemy, Naruto. If you are, not only will you die, but your friends and your village might die as well. Is that understood?"

Naruto gulped. This was serious business. He summoned all of his courage and nodded. He knew Jiraiya was speaking only for his benefit. Jiraiya suddenly smiled.

"Good," he said. "If you manage to do at least half of that scroll I might teach you a jutsu even more powerful than the Rasengan." That clinched the deal.

"Yay! A new jutsu! When I come back I'm going to be so cool!" Jiraiya laughed and turned to go away.

"Yeah, right," he scoffed. "If you are even on Kakashi's level by the time you get back, I'm going to teach you two extra jutsu." Jiraiya knew there was no way that could happen, but giving the kid some motivation always seemed to work. He went back to the meeting he had absconded before ANBU were sent to find him. Tsunade was certainly not above sending her private agents to drag him, one of the great Sannin, back.

XXX

Naruto was shocked when he got to the meeting place. First of all there was the ninja he was supposed to be travelling with. No one had told him it was a kunoichi. He didn't have any problems with females (after seeing Tsunade in action he never would) but he had just got the impression that it was a male. And the second shock was that Hinata was with the kunoichi. Just what the hell was going on?

"Just what the hell is going on?" he asked, walking up to them.

"Are you Naruto?" the kunoichi asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, and who the hell are you? And why is Hinata here? I thought it was only going to be us two."

"Jeez kid, quiet down," the kunoichi said. The kid was way too loud. "Hinata is here because I have to take her somewhere. After that it will be only just us."

"Oh…" Naruto didn't understand what was going on but if things were in order then he wasn't bothered. "Hey, Hinata!" he shouted at her, even though she was mere feet away from him.

_If I can stand him for three years, I'm buying myself a medal_, the kunoichi thought.

XXX

The first day went by fine. Naruto was still buzzing with energy. Every new mission always brought on this thrill. He tried to make conversation with the kunoichi but she only gave one word responses or none at all. After a few hours he turned to Hinata. She was the same. She barely said anything. Naruto managed to amuse himself for a few hours, but by the time it was night he was completely restless. All this quiet didn't do him much good. He liked being boisterous. All his boundless energy had no outlet and it was driving him mad.

"All right, what the hell is going on!?" he finally shouted at the kunoichi. He grabbed his head. "I can't take it! Who are you!? Why is Hinata here exactly? And when will we start to train! I have to get stronger! – argh!" Naruto choked as he was suddenly pushed to the ground. His right arm was twisted above and behind him. It was the kunoichi. How the hell had she moved so fast? He hadn't seen anything!

"I already told you to calm down and keep quiet," the kunoichi said. She sounded irritated. "You are a sorry excuse for a shinobi. Shinobi are supposed to be adaptable, intelligent and most of all quiet. You lack all of these qualities. How can I train you to be a shinobi when you lack even the fundamentals?" Naruto grunted in pain.

"Well teach me then!" he shouted. "Isn't that what you're supposed to do? Teach me? We're wasting time! I have to get stronger soon or else-"

"I know all about Akatsuki," the kunoichi said, her voice still irritated. "But I'm not going to rush your training so you can go home with a few flashy tricks. You need to be at your best. There is nothing better than the fundamentals. That is something that takes patience. You can't be taught patience. You have to learn it on your own. Until then, I can't teach you anything. Get used to it." The kunoichi let him go and kept on walking. Hinata took a long look at him. She was torn. What should she do? But after a second she followed the kunoichi. Naruto could take care of himself. His pride would heal.

XXX

It took them two weeks travelling to get to the mountains. The north east was riddled with them and the kunoichi realised it would take even experienced shinobi a while to find anyone in them. She looked back. Hinata was only a few paces behind her. The girl looked just as miserable as she had when she left Konoha. The kunoichi hoped that the girl would get over her shock, and fast, otherwise she would be an easy target.

The kunoichi's eyes travelled a hundred metres further back. The boy, Naruto, was following slowly. Her heart constricted for a second. As if sensing her discomfort the boy's eyes met hers, but only for a second before they went back into the sky. She had known, of course, the moment she had seen his silly picture on his ninja profile. How could she not? But the question that plagued her mind was how it had turned out like this at all. How had this boy been brought up in Konoha? Who was his father? There was only one place she could go to get the answers, but she sure as hell wasn't in a hurry to go there. The boy was completely ignorant, which was of course a good thing. It would explain why he had remained undiscovered. But still, with the surname Uzumaki how could his identity be a mystery to Konoha? She had been tempted to divulge what she knew to the old lady Tsunade but she had held her tongue at the last moment. She didn't know why, but something told her she should.

She regretted her actions on the first day of travel. She had been rough on the boy, but Tsunade had made it clear that the boy needed to grow up, and fast. She hadn't seen the boy for three days after that, but she knew he was somewhere behind, following. The girl, Hyūga Hinata, had grown increasingly worried to the point of irritation. But Naruto had shown up on the fourth day, early in the morning. He had kowtowed to her and apologized, and then did the same thing to Hinata. He sounded truly sincere, which worried her for a few seconds. From what she understood the boy was completely clueless most of the time. This was out of character for him. Could someone have replaced him? But after a few assessments she had concluded he was the real Naruto. But what had changed him so? He seemed … quiet. There was no other way to sum it up. He seemed almost at peace with himself. She decided not to question it. Whatever the source of the change, the boy was ready to begin his instruction. First of all, she had to drop off Hinata.

XXX

Hyūga Hinata was old, very old. She was five foot nothing and looked like she weighed no more than a feather. Her eyes were shut most of the time and yet she was very active and mobile. It was as if she had no need for eyes. While the kunoichi had gone into Hinata's cottage to talk with her in private, Naruto and Hinata were left outside. Naruto stayed quiet. This scared Hinata. This was not the Naruto she knew. What had happened to him?

"What … what's wrong, Naruto-kun?" she finally managed to pluck up the courage. But when he blinked and turned to look at her she blushed and looked down. Naruto frowned.

"What do you mean?" he asked. The sound of his voice was like a hammer in her mind. She shivered and sunk lower in her chair. Why did she have to talk? She firmly kept her mouth shut and did not look up. Naruto's confusion grew. Was she afraid of him? What the hell was going on?

"What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" he asked more gently. Hinata did not budge. Her face had gone crimson. Why did she have to speak!? Now Naruto probably thought she was even weirder. However that's not how Naruto interpreted her silence. Realization dawned on Naruto; there was something bothering Hinata. It would have taken any other person less time to figure it out, but Naruto was forever stuck in Naruto-world and was rarely astute.

"Tell me about your self, Hinata-chan," Naruto suddenly asked. He realised he barely knew anything about her. Hinata looked up in shock. Naruto was looking up at the sky. His eyes were glazed over with a look she couldn't identify.

"You … you want to know … about me?" Hinata asked hesitantly. Naruto nodded.

"Yes," he said. "Tell me about you and your family. Please." The last word came out with a note of pleading Hinata couldn't ignore. She took a deep breath and started talking.

XXX

Hyūga Hinata knelt across the table from the kunoichi. She had her eyes closed and a cup of green tea steamed in her hands.

"I understand your situation," Hinata-obaa-san said, "But I'm afraid there is little I can do to help." The kunoichi started. This isn't what she was expecting. Hadn't Tsunade-sama said that this transition would go smoothly?

"I don't understand," the kunoichi said. Hinata-obaa-san took a sip of her steaming green tea before explaining.

"It's true I am a talented shinobi, or at least I was. It's true that I could train this girl to become an excellent Hyūga and deal with all their inner politics. It's true that I can teach her to become an excellent shinobi. But all that is impossible for two reasons; the first one is that I am old. I tire easily these days. My body isn't what it used to be. There is no way I can effectively teach her; the second reason is that I'm dying. I don't have much time left in me. At least a year, maybe more. I don't think it would benefit the girl's fragile psyche if I died on her. She might turn more of a recluse and any training I would do with her would be for nothing. I'm sorry, but you have to take her with you."

The kunoichi took a deep breath and tried to calm down. This was going downhill. How was she supposed to train Naruto like this?

"Tell me about the boy," Hinata-obaa-san suddenly asked. The kunoichi looked up. There was something in the way the old woman asked so innocently that made her suspicious.

"What do you want to know?" the kunoichi asked.

"Is he _that_ kid?" Hinata-obaa-san asked. "The kid the Yondaime Hokage used to seal the Kyuubi no Yoko in?" The kunoichi suddenly tensed. That was classified information. Even within Konoha very few people actually knew the Kyuubi was sealed within Naruto. Since the Sandaime had forbidden talk of it, the selection of those with the knowledge was limited to the shinobi who had survived the attack and a few select civilians. But still, actions spoke louder than words and a few more people had guessed. How did this woman know? Especially since she hadn't been in Konoha in decades?

"Don't try anything stupid," Hinata-obaa-san calmly stated. "I might be old and dying, but I still outclass you. If you want to know something you only need to ask, girl." The kunoichi visibly calmed down. She took deep breaths before asking the old woman how she knew.

"I sensed his chakra," Hinata-obaa-san said in reply. "I also looked at chakra coils just to confirm my suspicions. I realised the boy is a Jinchuriki. However, the seal placed on him was more masterful than I had expected from Konoha ninja. There are very few people I have heard of in Konoha capable of placing that seal, the _Dansetsu no Sannin_ among them. But I also heard about the Fourth Hokage's prowess. In Earth Country the Fourth's skill with **Fúin** **jutsu**, Sealing techniques, is renowned, especially his **Hiraishin no jutsu**, his Flying Thunder God technique. Lastly, the only Tailed Beast that's come near Konoha in a long time is the Kyuubi. I might be getting old, but I still have common sense, girl."

The kunoichi let out a breath. She didn't like being called girl. "Yes, he is the container of the Kyuubi no Yoko," she admitted.

"The girl seems close to him," Hinata-obaa-san commented, completely moving on from the topic of Naruto. The kunoichi sighed inwardly. This old hag was tough to fathom. Other people would have dwelt on Naruto being Jinchuriki a while longer. Maybe it was the wisdom of the elderly. Nothing surprised or shocked them much anymore.

"I noticed that, too," the kunoichi commented. "It seems that Naruto's loud personality is something of an inspiration to her." Hinata-obaa-san was quite. The kunoichi even entertained the thought that the old woman had died right there. Hinata seemed completely lost in thought. Suddenly her eyes riveted back to the kunoichi.

"I will train Hinata for as long as I can on one condition."

"Which is?"

"That you and the boy also stay here until I die. I don't have long left, but I would like to do right by my granddaughter. I was always called a radical in the Hyūga because I disagreed with some of their politics. Hinata has the same potential as I did to question what she doesn't agree with. That boy has already developed his own opinions. I can tell just by looking at his face that he is very disagreeable. But I think this will be good for my granddaughter. The boy will help her mature out of her cocoon. Once she has come out, so will her true talent also emerge. Once that happens, she won't need a living tutor to excel. Before you disagree, let me point out that if I refuse, your training of the boy will become much more hindered and you won't accomplish your goal, and second of all I can help the boy to control his chakra, and maybe even the Kyuubi's. I can do that much better than you ever could. So what do you say?"

"What choice do I have?" the kunoichi grumbled. The mountains were secluded so they wouldn't be discovered for a while, but she needed to get the boy back to her safe house and fast. She didn't mean it but she found herself wishing for the old crone would die soon.

XXX

Naruto's face was stone hard as Hinata finished telling him about how her father had acted just before they left Konoha.

"I used to think you were a dark haired weirdo," Naruto commented in his honest way, "but I now realise I was wrong." Hinata looked at him shyly, wondering where he was going with this. "You are a strong person to be able to deal with your family. I never had family so I wouldn't know how family is supposed to act – Sasuke pointed this out to me when we fought – but I think that the Hyūga are out of order. How can you call them family when they treat you like that?"

"You can't choose your family," Hinata said, and she was surprised at her own sad tone.

"But still, that's just not right!" Naruto thundered. Hinata made soft sound at Naruto's outburst.

"Tell … I mean … would you mind … telling me about … yourself?" Hinata asked, trying to divert Naruto's anger. Naruto blinked and looked at her. His face sobered. There wasn't much about him to tell, apart from one thing. But he could never tell anyone, could he? He gulped and looked up at the clouds. No time like the present to find out if it was a wise thing to tell people about his secret. He told her.

"Thirteen years ago, the demon Kyuubi no Yoko attacked Konoha. It was so powerful that not even all of Konoha could stop it. But there was one man who had a plan. The Fourth Hokage was strong enough to stop the demon. He couldn't kill it – I don't really know why – but he could stop it. To do that, he had to seal the demon away. But not just everyone would volunteer for something like that, so he sacrificed his life and sealed the Kyuubi in the body of a new born baby. There weren't many babies then that fit the bill so he took one from an orphanage. He took me. The great demon Kyuubi no Yoko is sealed inside me." Naruto instinctively grasped at his navel. He had never really told anyone this. He didn't like to think he was going to lose a friend over it. Just how much could the Kyuubi affect his life? Naruto had to face his demons – no pun intended – and so he faced Hinata.

Her face said it all. Naruto felt his heart constrict. He had been about to tell her what had made him change his attitude on the way here. He knew both the kunoichi and Hinata were wondering what had made him transform. His mind shied away from the memory. He focused on Hinata's white face. She was afraid of him. He really couldn't blame her, could he? After all, he held a demon that could break free and kill everyone around him. No one was safe around him. That's why he had left to train, so that he wouldn't be a burden to others and so he could protect his friends. Naruto looked at Hinata's face and knew that he could never tell people about the Kyuubi. He would be treated with fear and suspicion. Something about Hinata's response, or rather lack response, hit him really hard. He turned away from her. His voice was toneless.

"We should go check on those two," he said as he got up. "We're wasting time." He started walking toward the cottage.

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata whispered, but either he did not hear her or he chose to ignore her because he kept on walking. Hinata's face was still white. Her emotions were in turmoil. She couldn't even begin to sort them out. When she had been telling Naruto about herself, she had finally started to feel as if a bond was growing between them. She had craved that bond in Konoha but could never muster the courage to seek it out. Now out here it seemed as if she had begun to get it. Now this. She got up with a resigned sigh and followed Naruto. At least she wouldn't have to deal with her obvious betrayal of his trust since he would be leaving her behind to go train with the kunoichi.

Well, at least he would be in good hands with the kunoichi known as Kazama Hiarashi. Her depression went unnoticed for a few seconds as her naturally bright and inquisitive mind thought about the family name Kazama. It sounded familiar. It was a clan name, of that she was sure. And then suddenly it clicked in her head. Wasn't the Kazama Clan a famous and powerful clan that had been a resident of the former Whirlpool Country? Hadn't there been some sort of cataclysm that had wiped them all out a few decades previously, along with Whirlpool Country? No, she finally decided, she must be mixed up with the names. Here was someone called Kazama, so she must have read the Clan name wrong or something. When her musings finished she suddenly felt ashamed of herself. Naruto was walking ahead of her, his head down, looking world-weary and pathetic at the same time. This new, or rather old, second hand uniform, did not suit him. She missed his loud orange jumpsuit. And his smile, his sparkling blue eyes and his laugh… Hinata shivered. She was thinking all of this to distract her mind, she knew that. She couldn't bear to think of the secret that Naruto had shared with her. Naruto … housed … a demon… The thought wouldn't penetrate her mind. She could not comprehend it. But that was beside the point. Naruto had trusted her and she had let him down. He had opened his heart to her and told her a secret he had kept locked up and she had turned away from him. Where he had expected support he had found none. But all Hinata could think about was the great big monster inside Naruto, the monster that had nearly destroyed Konoha thirteen years previously… NO! Naruto was not a monster! He kept it there, locked safely, not giving into it like that Suna shinobi, Gaara, had. That thought made her feel slightly better. Yes, Naruto was just a simple jailer. Who his prisoner was did not reflect on his person.

"Naruto!" she squeaked out. He did not hear her. He kept on walking as if lost in a world of his own. "Naruto!" she shouted a little louder. Still he did not hear her. She took deep breaths and calmed down. She dashed forward and caught up to him. "Naruto!" she said. He stopped and turned round to face her, his face blank. His eyes searched her face.

"Um…" Hinata said her face suddenly red. What was she thinking!? Naruto kept looking at her, patient as stone. Hinata took steadying breaths, not caring whether or not Naruto saw it. She finally calmed down enough to speak. "Um … I just wanted … to say that … that … you are very … very brave … bearing the Kyuubi … and keeping us safe…" She looked away, her face red again. She was unable to continue speaking. Naruto said nothing for a few seconds, and then a smile slowly started forming on his lips. He grinned. The next thing Hinata knew Naruto had taken her hand in his. He smiled at her and gave her hand a squeeze.

"Thank you, Hinata-chan," he said, his voice slightly hoarse with emotion. "Thank you. You are a good friend."

Hinata's face went crimson and she felt her vision blacken, but despite this she managed to stay conscious. Her heart was beating at a thousand miles a minute. She managed to smile hesitantly back at him. For both genin the journey had just gotten a whole load better.


	2. Chapter 2: Much Awaited Return

_**Three Years Later…**_

Tsunade sat behind her desk. Her frame was completely calm despite the disgust that was coursing through her veins, disgust and hatred. Her cold stare was levelled at the man who was sitting in front of her. The man in question was simply known as Danzo. Decades ago he had fought with Sarutobi-sama for the position of Sandaime Hokage. He had lost, much to his frustration. Danzo, to put it simply, was a military hawk. He welcomed aggression and war, and shunned peace and passiveness. For him, a Village couldn't call itself a shinobi village unless it was a hardcore military base, which Konoha wasn't. It was well known by inner circles that Danzo was of the opinion that Konoha needed a major ideological shift in order to survive in a world where ninja were constantly warring. The First Hokage's influence had tainted the village. In Danzo's opinion, this made all subsequent Hokages weak and indecisive as they adopted the First's philosophies. Danzo was curious in appearance. Sixty percent of his head was bandaged, with only his hair, left eye and eyebrow, nose, mouth and chin visible. He appeared to have lost his right eye at some point, but for someone of Danzo's political influence as well as his shinobi prowess, very few people knew how, and those who didn't ever dare ask. Danzo's left arm had also been removed sometime in the past. Instead of wearing a pinned up sleeve, Danzo seemed to prefer to simply bandage the area completely.

"This is the third time you've come to see me this week, Danzo-san," Tsunade said, according the older man some respect. No matter her own personal feelings, she was still the Hokage. It was expected of her to be courteous.

"With good reason, Hokage-sama," Danzo replied his deep, slow, selective voice. His eye was closed and his right hand held his walking stick. "The last two times you brushed off the matter but I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist you do something about it."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "Insist?" she asked coldly.

Danzo was unperturbed by the ice in her voice. He nodded. "After the second time you threw me out of your office-"

"I didn't throw you out," Tsunade interjected tiredly.

"-I convened a Council meeting, and the Council is behind me on this matter." Tsunade mentally threw herself off a mental cliff. She'd known it would come to this eventually.

"You convened a Council meeting without my knowledge?" was all Tsunade said, trying to muster ice into her voice, but it didn't work. She knew this was a lost battle. Danzo knew it, too. He didn't even bother answering her question. Instead he continued with his motion.

"The fact of the matter is, Hokage-sama," Danzo said, "The Jinchuriki was supposed to come back from his training mission nearly five months ago. There has been no word from him or the kunoichi you brought in to train him. We, meaning the Council, listened to the lies you fed for the first few months but now we are all very worried. You should understand as well as us the need to keep the boy in the village, away from any danger, especially the one Akatsuki poses."

"What do you want?" Tsunade asked, her voice still stern. She had to at least keep up the appearance that she was in control.

"Allow me to send shinobi to go and retrieve the boy, wherever he is."

"No," Tsunade said at once. She didn't trust this man with Naruto.

Danzo's eyebrow rose and his eye cracked open. "You don't have much of a choice, Hokage-sama. My shinobi are as good as your ANBU when it comes to tracking. Also, unlike you, I kept the Jinchuriki in my sights after he left Konoha. My shinobi would know where to start, whereas yours wouldn't."

"How dare you compromise Naruto like that?" Tsunade shouted. "You had no right to follow him without my permission. There was a reason why his disappearance was a secret!"

"It was a security measure, Hokage-sama," Danzo said calmly, "And one I'm now glad I instigated." Tsunade forced herself to calm down. The Council would see it Danzo's way. But she couldn't afford for Danzo's operatives to go after Naruto. Not now. Not after what Naruto had just gone through. She fought the impulse to reread the letter Hinata had sent nearly five months ago. Inside she grieved with Naruto, but she was the Hokage. She had to appear strong at all times, both to allies and enemies. And the man in front of her was most definitely an enemy, despite all appearances.

"Give me two weeks, and then you can do as you see best," Tsunade finally bargained.

"One week," Danzo countered instantly.

"…tch, fine," Tsunade said after a second's pause. Danzo remained sitting. "Is there something else you wished to discuss?" Tsunade asked.

"I was wondering, Tsunade-sama, if you know where Jiraiya-kun disappeared to?"

Tsunade shrugged. "You know his habits," she said nonchalantly. "Once he knew Konoha was back on its feet, he no longer felt obliged to be held here. No one could ever fully control him, not even Sarutobi-sensei. You know that."

"Hmm," Danzo pondered for a second. He stood up and bowed his head. "Thank you for your time, Hokage-sama," he said as he walked toward the door.

"It was a pleasure," Tsunade said dryly.

"One more thing," Danzo said with his walking stick held awkwardly in his finger as his palm rested on the door knob. "Would Jiraiya-kun's disappearance, which was nearly five months ago, have anything to do with the Jinchuriki's delayed return?"

"No," Tsunade said as she looked Danzo in the eye. "The two incidences have no connection whatsoever."

"Hmm," Danzo nodded slowly before opening the door and walking out. The door closed softly behind him. Tsunade swivelled her chair to face the window. Her face was blank, but beneath that her emotions roiled.

_No,_ she thought. _The two incidences have no connection. But I know Jiraiya would have found out something about Naruto once he left the village. He was always good at gathering information. And once he found out about Naruto, he would have rushed to the kid to help. I know you're with him, Jiraiya. Why haven't you returned yet?_

Tsunade sighed before turning back to her desk. She took out a large Bingo Book in which every Konoha ninja and his/her abilities were listed. Sticking out of the pages were numerous colour coded tags. She selected the one marked _"Tracking"_ and perused the first page, which was filled with the best tracking teams in Konoha. But after a few minutes of thinking she knew she couldn't trust this to a normal team. The information she would have to give was too sensitive, both to Konoha and to Naruto, to give to a normal team. She had to assign this to one of her ANBU teams.

She put the folder away. She then placed her index finger on a small, almost indistinct circle on her desk. She put a raindrop's worth amount of chakra. Instantly a line of chakra went down her desk and onto the marble floor. This mechanism was courtesy of Jiraiya. It increased efficiency in summoning many shinobi, most among them her ANBU squad captains. Each shinobi Tsunade had deemed trustworthy enough had a small **Jutsu shiki**, or Jutsu formula, on their person. For her ANBU captains, it came in the form of special dog tags. Once Tsunade put her chakra into the small circle, her chakra would flow down to the marble. The marble had a seal on it that was invisible due to the ink it was written in. Tsunade's chakra would activate it and all Tsunade had to do was think of the name of the person she wanted to summon and they would appear. It was basically a Summoning Technique used between people instead of between a ninja and an animal.

Tsunade thought of the ANBU captain she wanted. It took only a second before there was a puff of smoke. An ANBU captain stood in front of her.

"Hokage-sama?" he enquired softly.

She threw to him a manila folder. "Your mission details are in there," she said. "Carry them out in a week's time unless I instruct you otherwise."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." The ANBU bowed before he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

_You have a week, Naruto. Come back soon or I'm going to have a very large headache in the form of the Council._

XXX

_**Six days later…**_

Hagane Kotetsu and his partner Kamizuki Izumo were once again posted at the Main Gate. It was boring duty and they often complained about it, which was why they had found themselves on gate duty more frequently as time wore on. However, this was just a front. The two friends had a lazy knack and loved to just sit in the security booth and play shougi or cards. Of course, they had to keep the façade up. If their superiors ever found out they were being duped … well, things wouldn't end well.

"Oh, look," Kotetsu said as he perked up. Both shinobi surreptitiously put away their cards, making sure to mark which cards they had and how many cards were in the deck. The one thing about being best friends and being shinobi was that any game they played was always more interesting because they were both extremely unashamed and talented cheats. Being able to cheat, win, and get away with it was a very intoxicating mix.

"Who's that?" Izumo said as he squinted at the two figures coming up the road.

"I don't know," Kotetsu said, "But they look really familiar."

As the two figures came closer, the two Chunin could finally identify them. Kotetsu smiled. "Well if it isn't Jiraiya-sama and that shy girl from the preliminary Chunin exams three years ago … what was her name again? Hyuga Hinata, that's it."

"Oh, yeah," Izumo said. "But … whoa. That girl cannot be Hinata-kun. She's-"

"-Grown?" Kotetsu supplied dryly. Izumo blushed but otherwise didn't comment on his lapse. Hinata was after all eleven years his junior. _But then again,_ Kotetsu thought with a faint blush of his own, _admiring female beauty isn't a crime_. The two turned back to watch the approaching Konoha ninja.

"Ohayo gozaimasu, Jiraiya-sama, Hinata-kun," Kotetsu called out with a wave.

"Good morning to you, too," Jiraiya called back.

"Ohayo gozaimasu," Hinata said to the two Chunin softly.

"Tsunade-sama said to tell you to go to her office if we ever saw you," Izumo said as he waved as well. Jiraiya's face went downcast at once and both Chunin couldn't help but grin. Jiraiya of the Sannin was in trouble with Tsunade-sama. One of pastimes shinobi had developed was to bet on how far Tsunade-sama could punch Jiraiya-sama. It was extremely entertaining, especially seeing as it only happened every so often.

"A thousand ryó on a thousand meters," Kotetsu murmured while still managing to keep his lips in the semblance of a smile.

"Fifteen hundred ryó on fifteen hundred meters," Izumo countered.

"Well, I guess I can't put it off so might as well do it now," Jiraiya said as he and Hinata continued walking. The two Chunin laughed manically before turning back to their game. As Jiraiya and Hinata walked, they could here several shouts behind them. While they couldn't completely decipher them, Hinata managed to pick up something about cheating.

XXX

"Where the hell have you been?" Tsunade shouted.

"Calm down, Tsunade," Jiraiya said. "You know I couldn't stay in this village for long. Next to my genin days, the last two years are the longest I've ever been in Konoha!"

"You still could have left a note or something," Tsunade grumbled. Jiraiya shrugged. He wasn't someone who "left notes". Tsunade rounded on Hinata.

"And you have a lot of explaining, young lady," Tsunade said. "Where is your sensei? Don't tell me Hiarashi didn't come with you?"

"Hiarashi-sensei is with Naruto-san," Hinata lied expertly.

Tsunade nodded. "And how is Naruto?" she asked.

"Naruto-san is better now," Hinata said with a small smile. "He's nearly back to his old self."

"Good," Tsunade said. "You do understand that you're going to have to write a full report on where you have been and what you have been doing for that past three years? As usual, Hiarashi was lazy and only sent me _one note_ to say you were all alright, and that was just after you left!"

"That does sound like Hiarashi-sensei," Hinata agreed with a smile. Tsunade drew back a little and locked eyes with Hinata. _The girl's changed_, Tsunade realised. _Still, I'm going to have to talk to her privately afterward._

"And Naruto-san and I already thought about the report," Hinata continued, "So we compiled one together with all the relevant information. Here it is." Hinata took out a manila folder from her black vest and handed it to Tsunade. Tsunade couldn't help but note that the black vest was what some of the lesser shinobi villages used for their Jonin. Was Hiarashi confident enough in this girl's abilities to allow her to wear this vest? Tsunade frowned and resolved to have a few words with Hiarashi when they next met. She felt too much in the dark about the last three years and their effect on Naruto and Hinata.

"Thank you, Hinata," Tsunade said as she opened the folder and started reading. Her eyebrows rose. This would make for an interesting read that was for sure.

"How is your grandmother?" Tsunade asked as she reluctantly put the report aside.

"She died two years ago," Hinata said quietly.

"My condolences," Tsunade said, and she meant it. "What did she die of?"

"…Old age," Hinata said.

"A rare and beautiful thing to happen to a shinobi," Jiraiya said, talking for the first time since they had entered the office. Hinata nodded in agreement. Loosing her grandmother so soon after finding out about her had been hard on her. But, as the elder Hinata had predicted, having Naruto in her life had helped her to move on.

"Thank you, Jiraiya-sama," Hinata said.

"Get lost, pervert," Tsunade said. "I need to talk to Hinata alone."

"Whatever," Jiraiya said as he turned round to go. "I have plenty of research to catch up on-" Jiraiya didn't get to finish as Tsunade jumped over the table and punched Jiraiya in the back. The poor Toad Hermit went sailing through the wall, out into the air and continued to fly for exactly fifteen hundred meters before he hit a wall and dropped to the ground.

XXX

Kotetsu and Izumo looked up from their fresh game of poker as they saw a speck go through the wall of the Hokage's office. Their eyes trained on the speck until it hit the wall. Kotetsu turned to look at Izumo, a scowl on his face. Izumo relaxed back into his chair and put his legs up on the counter of the security booth, a smug smile on his face.

"It looks like money, sake and women tonight," Izumo said.

"The three vices for a shinobi," Kotetsu grumbled to himself as he tried to make sense of his hand. Izumo laughed as laid his hand out on the counter.

"Flush," Izumo announced with a smile. Kotetsu growled. That was another ten ryó out of his bank account.

XXX

"So," Tsunade said as she sat down in her private chamber with Hinata. "What's been going on these past three years?"

"It's all in the report, Tsunade-sama," Hinata said.

"So it is," Tsunade said as she placed the report on the table. She leaned back on the sofa and stared at the four pictures of the four Kages before her. _She really has matured_, Tsunade thought.

"Well, then," Tsunade said. "I guess all that's left is to update you on how your clan has been doing these past three years."

"Are they well, Hokage-sama?" Hinata asked, her face worried.

"They are fine, Hinata," Tsunade said. Hinata's apprehension disappeared and her calm demeanour returned. "But I guess you should know that there was an attempted political coup d'état by one, Hyuga Himochi, exactly a year after you left. Fortunately your father still has influence with the Hyuga Council. He was voted to remain as Clan Leader by a majority of seven. Two less, however, and he would have been removed. Things seemed volatile for a while but they have calmed down."

"… I see," Hinata said at length.

"I'll give you a full report on your way out," Tsunade said. "But there is one matter I feel I should bring to your attention. I was very fortunate to come upon this information myself."

"What is it?" Hinata asked with a frown. Why had her heartbeat increased slightly?

"During your absence, perhaps as a prelude to the attempted coup, Hyuga Himochi managed to convince the Hyuga Council that Hiashi-san had to elect an heir between his daughters, and the other one would be branded with the **Caged Bird Seal**."

"Oh no," Hinata said. "Not Hanabi-chan?"

"No," Tsunade said. "Hanabi-kun was elected as the Clan heir."

"That means…" Hinata said slowly.

Tsunade nodded grimly. "You are set to be branded and turned out to the Branch House as soon as you return … I'm sorry."

XXX

Hyuga Hiashi slowly cooled down after his early morning workout. He felt his heart slow down and his entire body follow suit. Hiashi allowed himself a small smile. Even at his age, forty-five, which was considered quite old for someone who was a shinobi, he still felt as strong as he had been ten years previously. But, he conceded, he hadn't been an active shinobi for a long time. Being alive wasn't a compliment as much as just a matter of luck. His duties as Clan Leader of the Hyuga prevented him from being an active shinobi just as much as Tsunade-sama's duties as Hokage prevented her to leave Konoha.

He could sympathise with Tsunade-sama's frustration at being forced to stay in Konoha to keep it safe while Konoha's resources were stretched to the limit. The first two years after the Suna/Oto invasion had been hell for her, and he had to admit he had felt the same way. But the Hyuga Council had been adamant. He wasn't allowed to reactivate his shinobi status. That had, to put it bluntly, pissed him off. But he was a Hyuga. His mind was trained to think logically. He knew they were right. But he was the Clan Leader of the Hyuga, and therefore not powerless. Instead, he had instigated measures to aid Konoha. This was both a political move to garner favour for the Hyuga Clan as well to do _something_ to help the village he loved as much his Clan, and there was no higher affection he could give Konoha than that.

The Hyuga Clan was the only Clan in Konoha – and in most of the other shinobi villages – that trained every member in the shinobi arts. Whether or not the individual intended to become a professional shinobi was of little consequence. For centuries the Hyuga had maintained the tradition of training all its members, shinobi and non-shinobi, up to the third level of the **Hakke no Juuni Dankai**. Those who were going to be shinobi continued with the **Hakke no Juuni Dankai** until the end of the course, until they mastered the Hyuga Arts.

**Hakke no Juuni Dankai**, the Twelve Steps of the Eight Trigrams. These steps contained all of the Hyuga knowledge when it came to their ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu, kenjutsu, kinjutsu and any other shinobi skill. Centuries ago a Clan Head had made it compulsory for all Hyuga to learn these skills up to the fifth level. After that, if a Hyuga did not wish to continue to learn the ninja skills, they could walk away and find an occupation that suited them. But it was paramount that the Hyuga have as many trained combatants in case they should be involved in a feud or war of some kind. There was another stipulation. All Branch House members could only learn up to the ninth level of step in the** Hakke**, the Eight Trigrams. This was done so that the Main House would always have more knowledge and skill so that in case every Branch House member revolted, the Main House would have a chance at defending themselves. The last three levels were reserved for the Main Branch only. Of course, even after the Hyuga joined in making Konohagakure no Sato, this stipulation wasn't lifted. After all, it was tradition for things to be this way. Why change a method that had always worked? Hiashi's father had lowered the compulsory limit to the third level. After all, now that the Hyuga were an integrated part of Konoha, there was no need to force the Hyuga who didn't want to become shinobi to waste so much of their younger years learning skills they wouldn't need. Hiashi had been sorely tempted to raise the limit back up again to the fifth level after the Suna/Oto invasion, but the Hyuga Council had talked him out of it. After all, just as Hiashi's father had thought, the Hyuga Clan was surrounded by allies. Things would work out.

So, as Clan Head, Hyuga Hiashi had selected the more gifted members of the Branch House and Main House and had registered them as shinobi, a hundred Hyuga all in all. The relief that had brought to Konoha's stressed resources was immense. Hiashi was able to garner more power for the Hyuga and help the village he loved. Everyone won.

Hiashi let out a breath and got down from his handstand, his legs folding under him so that he ended up sitting in the lotus position. He stayed like that for ten minutes, aligning his mind. He only got this extensive a workout once a month, and he valued it very much. The rest of the month he only got sporadic sessions that allowed him to stretch and vent, but those were in private. It did not do to show weakness to his followers and any watching enemies. Hiashi finally got up. He looked to the left. Five of the Branch Family's best shinobi and three of the Main Branch's best were sat together, sweat coating their bodies, their clothes sticking. Even after twenty minutes of rest they were still slightly out of breath.

_Still got it!_ Hiashi couldn't help but gloat. And then a hush went over the small yard. Hiashi slowly turned round to face the entrance. A wind picked up, blowing his hair back and rustling his white – and still spotless – _gi_. Hiashi managed not to show emotion, but inside he was angry. It had only been three years. How come she was back yet? He knew her capabilities. She simply couldn't be ready yet to deal with the plots surrounding the Hyuga Clan. _Why was she back!?_

The feminine form walked forward. Hiashi was surprised to see that she was only a few inches shorter than he was. She was dressed in a dark blue pair of trousers and a dark blue short sleeved shirt. On top of the shirt she wore a sleeveless black Jonin vest, which surprised him but he didn't comment. She wore armour in the form of white vambraces on her forearms, white guards on the back of her hands and white greaves on her shins. Her hair had grown long and it was now a pitch black, which contrasted with her pale compaction. Her face was devoid of expression. She looked up at him, her posture somehow demure, yielding to his presence. She got on her knees and kowtowed to him three times before keeping her forehead on the ground.

"Hiashi-sama," Hinata said. "Please forgive my long absence." Hiashi looked down at her for a few seconds.

"Rise," he finally said, indicating that she should get up as well as that he had forgiven her. Hinata got up, her head just low enough to indicate that she was being submissive. Despite this, she still looked into his eyes squarely.

"Come," Hiashi finally said, not managing to read anything off her body language or her eyes. "We have much to prepare and do by midnight." The last bit was unnecessary. Hinata instantly read that he was telling her that's when she would be branded. She followed him quietly.

XXX

In a subterranean structure, Danzo stood with the aid of his walking stick. A ninja was kneeling in front of him.

"I gave Tsunade a week and it's almost up. However, I have no intention of risking her screwing up. Go and find the Jinchuriki. Start in Sunagakure. Five months ago he was spotted along with the Hyuga girl. Be careful not to get caught. It could cause … complications."

"_Hai_, Danzo-sama," the ninja said before he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

XXX

Thousands of miles away, Uzumaki Naruto took in a deep breath and opened his eyes. He slowly released the breath, and with it all his grogginess. He got out a scroll from his clothes and activated it. From the small roll of parchment emerged a large cylindrical wooden vessel. Naruto formed a seal with his fingers. With his **Kage Bunshin no jutsu** he summoned forth ten clones and sent them on a ten minute walk to the nearest stream to get water. When they returned twenty minutes with crudely fashioned buckets filled to the brim with water, Naruto had built a fire under the wooden bathtub and it was piping hot. One by one the shadow clones poured their load into the bathtub. Great billows of steam formed as the some of the water evaporated. Naruto gave the fire a few more minutes to warm to the water before getting in. It was before dawn and the sky was still slightly dark. Naruto looked up at the sky as it slowly lightened, the last stars slowly winking out of existence. Naruto sat there in his bathtub for half an hour, allowing his muscles to relax. While he soaked his shadow clones were clearing up his camp and preparing food. When they had finished their tasks they cancelled the technique. Naruto allowed himself a few more minutes of relaxation before stepping out of the bathtub. He dried himself with a towel and resealed the bathtub into the scroll. He hung up the towel to dry as he ate his food, which consisted mainly of bread, water and some fruit the shadow clones had rummaged from the surrounding foliage. When he finished he brushed his hair. It was a habit he had picked up from his senseis, Hiarashi and Jiraiya. There was something oddly comforting and almost ritualistic about the act. It also helped that brushing his hair made it less of a nuisance. It was naturally spiky, there was nothing he could do about that, but at least he could make sure it didn't itch and distract him. Finally he started dressing. He took pleasure in the simple movements that transformed him from just another boy to an imposing looking ninja.

He put on his simple black trousers, polo neck shirt and jacket. He then took two long white bandages and tied the hems of his trousers to his shins, tying the bandages down all the way to his feet. He then put on his crimson, blood red armour; two greaves that covered his shins; two vambraces that covered his forearms with two attached plates that covered the backs of his hands; a thick breastplate that covered his chest and belly; a backplate that covered his … um, back; two plates that seamlessly joined the breastplate and backplate, also protecting his sides; and two straight pauldrons that protected his shoulders. The breastplate, backplate, the joining plates and the pauldrons were made from thick sheets of metal that were layered one slightly on top of the next, granting Naruto more flexibility than normal armour would allow. The armour had been a gift from Gaara, Ero-Sennin and the toads of Mount Myoboku. Their combined efforts had made this armour, Naruto's sixteenth birthday present. He smiled, the action cracking his calm mask and bringing forth a look of pure joy. The smile slowly dimmed until the calm mask was back on, but the joy never left Naruto's bright blue eyes. He finally put on his last piece of armour. To him, it was more than a piece of armour. It was a symbol of his faith and allegiance, of the foundations of his entire life. His hitai-ate, his forehead protector, had a new black band with which to tie it with. He tied his hitai-ate firmly in place on his forehead but nevertheless his long and spiky blond hair managed to spill over the hitai-ate and completely cover his left eye. Naruto strapped on his kunai pouch onto his right thigh and his shuriken pouch onto his left thigh. He then took his weapons pouch and clipped it to his trousers, on his waist.

Naruto stretched his arms experimentally and smiled. This armour would serve him well. Its special qualities would prove very useful when combined with his specific skills. Naruto took in a deep breath through his nose, held it for a count to three, and then let it out slowly through his mouth. It was another day. He quickly cleared his camp until there was no sign that he had ever been there, shouldered his small backpack and started walking through the silent forest, his own presence going unnoticed by the creatures that lived there. Hinata-san and Ero-Sennin had left for Konoha a week previously. He had told them he would catch up later. It had been six months since he had found out he had roots. That had been the best day of his life, and the worst. After two and a half years of training with Hiarashi – one year spent learning from old lady Hinata as well – and learning from the scroll Ero-Sennin had given him, Naruto had felt better equipped to deal with the problems in his life. And then on one final trip with Hiarashi-sensei and Hinata-san, the three ninja had happened onto the island that had housed the former Whirlpool Country Hidden Village. They had met a ninja squad who had mistaken them for the vanguard of an enemy army. The fight had been brief but violent. The ninja were strong but Hinata-san, Hiarashi-sensei and himself were no pushovers, not by a long shot. After subduing the ninja, Hiarashi-sensei had asked them some questions, and during this interrogation one of the ninja had recognised her. Events seemed to blur after that as Naruto, Hinata and Hiarashi were led to the ninjas' base. The revelations that had followed had shaken Naruto and Hinata to the core. Their sensei, Hiarashi, was of the Kazama Clan, a Clan that had destroyed an entire Country. The Kazama Clan was divided into two families, the Boufuu Family … and the Uzumaki Family. And in the cataclysmic event that had destroyed Whirlpool Country and left it nothing more than a wasteland ruled by shinobi clans and brigands, the Uzumaki Family was annihilated. Naruto had been disconsolate for days until a thought had struck him: this cataclysm had happened decades previously. He had been born fifteen and a half years previously. Whoever his parents were, they had to have survived the cataclysm somehow.

Naruto looked up at the sky. Ero-Sennin had found them at the Boufuu headquarters. After hearing about the situation her Clan Family, the Boufuu Family, was in, Hiarashi-sensei had decided to stay and help. Ero-Sennin had taken Hinata and him under his wing, refining them as they continued their trip back to Konoha. Naruto briefly smiled as he remembered Ero-Sennin's shocked face when Naruto had told the super-pervert that he had completed learning from the scroll. Naruto had used the advice he had gotten from Hinata-obaa-san and used his **Kage Bunshin no jutsu** technique to speed up his training. Hinata had tried to use the same method (Naruto having taught her the Shadow Clone Technique) but due to the fact that she didn't have nearly as much chakra as Naruto, she could not maintain the jutsu for long – her Shadow Clone training came in small bursts. All this time the three were travelling back to Konoha, they had been looking for the clues to Naruto's parentage. Ero-Sennin was a great help, much to Naruto's surprise. The man was ordinarily quite lazy.

Naruto stopped walking. He had told Ero-Sennin and Hinata he just needed time to calm down. They had found out that Naruto's mother was named Uzumaki Kushina and that she was buried at a sacred site, a site located within Fire Country. When they had travelled there, they had found the site demolished and the body missing. Naruto's mother's grave had been defiled. Naruto's hands clamped hard at the straps of his bag. His anger always came readily to the surface these days. He took deep breaths and forced his body to calm down. The muscles that had been tensing and flexing, getting ready for battle, slowly relaxed. His chakra, which he had trained himself to be ready at all times, slowly receded until it was back to the normal calm stream that flowed through his body.

The real reason he had separated from Ero-Sennin and Hinata was not to have some time to calm down. It was so he could track down the grave robber that had defiled his mother's grave. He would make that unfortunate person pay.

XXX

The faint rays of sunshine burst their way over the horizon, bringing a new morning to Konoha. The blinds in Tsunade's office were open, basking the wooden and marble furnishings in a golden glow. The Hokage and the occupants of her office did not have time to appreciate the sight, however. It was business as usual, and this business was grimmer than most.

"I have a mission request from _Hi no Tera_, the Temple of Fire," Tsunade began. "Several of the sacred gave sites in their care have been vandalised. At first it was suspected that it was mere grave robbers, although it was slightly baffling as nothing was taken. Last week another grave site was attacked and the only thing stolen was the body inside. The Temple of Fire has requested help from Konoha to track down the grave robbers and secure the missing body. This will be your mission. In addition, however, I want you to take the grave robbers prisoner and bring them back here for interrogation. These grave sites are protected by powerful seal barriers and only very accomplished shinobi could break them. I want to find out who these grave robbers are exactly. Understood?"

"Hai!"

"For this mission you will be working as a normal shinobi of Konoha. All other shinobi qualified for this mission are currently out on missions of their own so you're going to be working with three subordinates; my apprentice Haruno Sakura, the medical ninja of the squad; Sai, a member of the former _Né_, Root, so stay sharp around him; and Hyuga Hinata. They are waiting outside right now, so go and get changed and prepared while I brief them."

"Hokage-sama!" the ANBU agent said with a bow. "One more thing…"

"Yes?"

"What is to be my codename for this mission?"

"Your name is going to be … Yamato."

"Very well, Hokage-sama."

"And concerning those mission specs I gave you a week ago, the specs regarding the tracking of Uzumaki Naruto … forget them."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." The ANBU agent disappeared in a puff of smoke.

XXX

After Tsunade dismissed them, Sakura, Sai and Hinata walked out of the Hokage's office and into the hallway. They stood there for a silent minutes, sizing each other up. Hinata stood a little apart from the other two. She had learnt better ways of gauging people's personalities and attributes than open scrutiny. Nevertheless she found herself interested in how her comrades looked. Sakura, the loud and violent girl of their genin days had filled out quite well. Her apprenticeship to the Hokage had forced her to hone her skills and mature. Hinata did not have to activate her Byakugan to detect the large, soft and fine chakra of a medical ninja. Hinata could tell from the chakra she sensed – an ability her grandmother had taught her – from Sakura that Sakura's level of skill as a medical ninja was on the same level as the Hokage's assistant, Shizune. Physically Sakura had grown taller. Her frame was slim but powerful, like a feline. Those green eyes that had radiated conceit and arrogance back in their genin days now revealed a young woman who was a good shinobi and medic. Instead of a pink dress with a circular design on the back, Sakura had settled for a maroon shirt with a circular design on the back and a pink mini-skirt with the seams cut off halfway up to reveal bandaged thighs. Pink bands covered both her elbows and she wore black gloves. Sakura still wore her hair short with her hitai-ate tied on top of her pink hair.

Sai was a curious figure. He was quite attractive and yet he seemed completely oblivious of the fact. His black eyes showed nothing, no emotion whatsoever. Being a Hyuga, she was used to seeing much of someone simply from their eyes. It was an unnerving experience looking into Sai's blank eyes. Physically Sai was the same as Sakura, tall and lean, like a hunter. He wore a thick canvas shirt that only covered his chest, leaving his flat stomach exposed. The long sleeved jacket on top of that was designed likewise. There was a tanto strapped to his back and he wore a small backpack. The image was completed by black trousers. He was an altogether normal looking shinobi. And therein lay the incongruity. Hinata could tell Sai was far from normal. His chakra was way too refined for him to be a normal Chunin; it felt nearly as refined as Sakura's, who was a medic nin. This Sai, whoever he was, had expert training.

Hinata herself felt better. There would be a slight twinge now and then as the **Caged Bird Seal**, which was still adapting to Hinata's mind, settled. The Seal was designed to be given at a young age. There had to be special preparations to the sealing ritual so Hinata wouldn't die from the experience. She still wore a bandage on her forehead as the skin was still sore. This wasn't a problem as she wore her hitai-ate tied loosely around her neck. The day after the sealing had been a painful one. Every fibre of her being had felt like it was being burned in magma. But she had taken a leaf from Naruto's book. She hadn't let her impairments keep her bedridden. She had taken up the life of a Hyuga once again and done what was required of her. She had been surprised when her father had allowed her to keep staying with the Head Family and not move to the Branch Family compound. She had thought of reclining the offer, and she was actually going to, but then in a rare show of emotion her father had _asked_ her to stay instead of simply ordering her. She had stayed. With the return to Hyuga life, her wardrobe had to be brought up to date. All her clothes were thrown away as they were now too small. In addition to the numerous new kimonos and fans and other such ladylike attire, Hinata's ninja wardrobe had also been renewed. She had acquired armour in the form of a breastplate and a backplate which were seamlessly united by two joining plates during her training with Hiarashi-sensei. She also wore slim and delicate looking vambraces and their appearance was certainly deceiving. Although they looked wooden, they were actually made from a strong metal alloy. Hinata wore a long sleeved white shirt beneath the armour, which served to highlight they grey tones of the armour itself. She wore the standard ninja trousers, except hers were red in colour. She wore greaves over her shins that were similar to her vambraces.

"How have you been, Hinata-chan?" Sakura asked. Hinata shook herself from her reverie and turned to look at Sakura. She bowed her head slightly and replied.

"I have been well, Sakura-chan. And you?"

"I have been good. Tsunade-sama barely gives me enough time to sleep so I don't think about anything else much."

"That's good to hear." Hinata turned to Sai. "It's nice to meet you, Sai-kun."

"Hinata-san," Sai said with a bow in greeting. "Sakura-san. I will meet you both at the Main Gates tomorrow morning, when the mission commences." Without another word he was surrounded by a vortex of black liquid and then disappeared. A form of the **Shunshin no jutsu**, then. Hinata was tempted to use her Byakugan to find out the path Sai had taken. After all **Shunshin no jutsu**, the Body Flicker Technique, just like any other teleportation technique, was merely high speed movement. If you were skilled enough you could track the path the user of the technique had taken. But then she relented. She had other things to occupy her attention.

"So rude!" Sakura fumed. "Since we're going to be working together he could at least try to get to know us."

"Something tells me there's more to him than meets the eye," Hinata murmured. "At any rate I have to go and prepare, so please excuse me Sakura-chan." Hinata bowed and left. Sakura huffed. Wasn't anyone going to try and get some team-working down?

"Oh whatever," Sakura said to herself. "I have some research to finish anyways."


	3. Chapter 3: The Enemy Appears: Furido!

Naruto formed the Ram hand seal and said, "**Henge!**" There was a soft exploding sound and a puff of white smoke surrounded his body, and when it cleared a few seconds later an owl was hovering six feet above the ground. After a few seconds the owl deepened its down strokes and flew up into the night air. From such a high vantage point it was easy to see that something was wrong. It was a humid spring evening and the sky was clear, the stars and moon shining brightly. Why, then, was there a patch of land covered in dense fog? The owl flew closer to the ground and started gliding just above the reach of the fog. With an owl's incredible night vision, it was easy for Naruto to see past the fog and down to what was happening on the ground. He'd finally found them, the graverobbing bastards who had defiled his mother's tomb, and here they were, defiling another tomb. He hooted, keeping in character with his owl persona. That was one of the things most shinobi forgot to do, and consequentially why not many shinobi past the rank of genin used the **Henge no jutsu**; in the midst of a mission it was an easy thing to forget to keep in character with a disguise, especially when something momentous was happening. But that was the difference between a dead shinobi and a living one. The dedication and thought placed into a mission ruled whether or not the mission succeed and with what kind of results. Naruto was not about to make an amateurish mistake, especially where his mother's eternal rest was concerned.

He veered away from the site of the tomb. The robbers were in the process of getting past a seal barrier. Being a student of the Perverted Hermit, he knew quite a bit about sealing jutsu. He'd also seen the sites of the other grave robberies. These shinobi, no matter what other skills they possessed, weren't experts at sealing jutsu. It would take them a while to get past this barrier. In that time he could observe the surroundings. A good shinobi always used his surroundings to his advantage. Naruto didn't know whether or not the people he was dealing with were good shinobi, but any idiot would make sure of his surroundings before he committed a crime. It followed that therefore the robbers had some kind of perimeter set up. The fact that the mist they had summoned was in a vaguely circular shape indicated that it might mark the perimeter. In fact, it might be part of the warning system, which was why he hadn't flown into it. He needed to make sure of what he was dealing with. Unfortunately he didn't have the time to study the mist in detail. Using chakra at that magnitude would be like lighting up a flare; his enemies would immediately know not only of his presence but of his exact location. He flew around for five minutes, memorising what he could see of the terrain. Afterward he flew immediately out of the area of the mist's reach and landed on the ground, behind a bush. His form melted smoothly from that of an owl to that of a badger. He looked around in this new form, just in case his chakra had been sensed, but everything seemed fine. Something deep inside him, despite the gravity of the situation, couldn't help but feel pride at his Shapeshifting jutsu. It had taken months of study and research, and he'd had to learn to refine his chakra to medic-nin quality along the way, both for the research and the jutsu, but it had been worth it. He'd managed to sneak up on Hiarashi-sensei and the Perverted Hermit on numerous occasions because of it, and that was not an easy thing to do.

He started tunnelling his way to the tomb. The **Hidden Mist Jutsu** only covered twenty feet above the ground, and seeing as water jutsu were naturally weaker than earth jutsu, this particular jutsu would have to be powered that extra bit to cover underground, and he would have detected such a large chakra at work. Coming up from under the ground was his safest bet. Besides, he had memorised all of the affected terrain under the light supplied by the moon and stars. He didn't need to see to be able to get to where he needed to go.

XXX

Yamato was the first one to get to the meeting point, a habit he always enjoyed considering how his senpai was notoriously and infamously known for always being late. For once in his life Yamato saw all the members of a team arrive at the meeting point exactly on time, and what was more surprising they were all coming from different directions. They arrived to where he was standing at the same time. All of them were awake and alert, and he noticed they were surreptitiously observing him as well as each other. Great, that was all he needed, people who had never worked together. There was a reason the four-man cells had been a successful and basic military tool, and why the forming of bonds between ninja of the same age group was encouraged; it made it easier in the field if ninja were familiar with each other. That way a mission had a higher probability of succeeding.

"Hello," he said. "My name is Yamato, and I will be your team leader. I can see that you've never worked with each other before so before we set off on our mission I think it would be a good idea if we all got to know each other. I'll start. As I have already mentioned, my name is Yamato. I am a Jonin, and seeing as none of you recognise me, I suppose you have already guessed that I am a member of ANBU. Unfortunately that information is, as you well know, classified, so I can't share any more with you. Now let's see, how about we start by our medic-nin introducing herself?"

Sakura gave a little bow in Yamato's direction. "My name is Haruno Sakura and I'm sixteen years old. I made chunin a year ago, and for the last three years I have been apprenticed to Lady Tsunade, learning medical ninjutsu among other things. Because of this I have had little time for anything that isn't food or sleep, but I enjoy reading a good book. As a genin I was a member of Team 7, and my team mates were Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto; Hatake Kakashi was our Jonin team leader."

"Nice to meet you, Sakura," Yamato said nodding to her. He knew all about her, of course, he knew about all of them. He had read up on their files, but it was better for them to introduce themselves and speak to the squad. It bred trust, which made for better team work during the mission.

"How about you?" Yamato said turning toward Hinata.

"My name is Hyūga Hinata," Hinata said calmly, her voice soft. "I am of the Hyūga Clan, and until I came back last week I had been on an extended mission outside of Konoha and the Land of Fire for three and a half years. Also until last week I was a member of the Main Family of the Hyūga, before my father branded me with our Clan's secret seal. I am not bitter, just happy to know that my little sister did not have to suffer what I did. I was a member of Team 8 as a genin and my team mates were Aburame Shino and Inuzuka Kiba; Yuhi Kurenai was our Jonin team leader."

"Pleased to meet you," Yamato said with another nod. "And you?" he said turning to Sai.

"My name is Sai. I am a former member of _Né_, of the Foundation Root, and an ANBU member." That was all he said. It took a few seconds for the others to realise this.

_Jeez_, Sakura thought, _just how unsociable is this guy? He hasn't said anything of note!_

_So he is one of Root's, then_, Hinata thought. _What I've heard about them isn't good, and if they are truly responsible for the Land of Wood annihilation they are as ruthless as they are emotionless, if this Sai is any indication. I wonder what Naruto-san would make of him?_

_So what they say about Root is right, then_, Yamato thought. _Emotionless and personality lacking bastards who are no more than mere tools for that military hawk Danzo._

"OK, then," Yamato said to them. "That will have to do for now. We'll get to know each other better as this mission progresses. As for the mission, we have been ordered by the Hokage to assist the Temple of Fire with investigating a series of grave robberies that have been occurring on sacred sites. The sites are under the protection of the Temple of Fire monks and are protected by class A seal barrier jutsu. In each case nothing in the tombs was touched but the bodies were stolen. Each of then stolen bodies belonged to former ninja, ninja who used to be members of the _Shugonin Jūnishi_, the Twelve Guardian Ninja. It is safe to assume that the goal of these unknown grave robbers is to take the bodies of all the buried members, but as to the why we do not know. That is our mission. We will stop these grave robberies. We will find out who is responsible for the grave robberies. We will return any bodies we are able to recover to the Temple of Fire. Lastly, we will apprehend the criminals responsible and return them to Konoha for questioning. Understood?"

"Hai!" all three team members shouted simultaneously.

"Good. Move out!"

XXX

"Welcome to _Hi no Tera_, the Temple of Fire. I am the abbot, the head monk. My name is Chiriku."

Yamato and his subordinates bowed deeply. It wasn't just the sash tied around Chiriku's waist with the kanji for fire - proving that he used to be one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja – that demanded such respect. It was also the aura that surrounded the man. It wasn't dangerous, as such, just powerful. The man was powerful, and his piercing gaze seemed to burn away at all the deceptions and look at your bare soul.

"Thank you, Chiriku-san. I am Yamato, the leader of this squad. My subordinates here are Haruno Sakura, our medic-nin, Hyūga Hinata and Sai. The Hokage sent us as soon as she knew of your plight. I hope we are here in time to prevent any more grave robberies?"

"Only three tombs have been raided so far, and another three are left. I have my monks watching the remaining three. Seeing as nothing is known about the criminals responsible, I have ordered my monks not to engage the enemy and merely observe. We at this Temple have developed excellent skills where observing unobserved is necessary, which is a distasteful notion but one decreed necessary by this Temple's founders."

"Indeed," Yamato said. "Any world where ninja and deception are required is a sad world."

Chiriku looked intently into Yamato's eyes for ten full seconds before he gave a small nod, almost as if to himself. "Indeed… Please, come this way to rest and refresh yourselves. We can also discuss your plan of action. Us _s__ōhei_, us warrior monks, train in the martial ways to help purify our bodies and spirits, and help focus our minds, but when it comes to dealing with criminals most of us are inexperienced and wouldn't know where to begin. Most of the _sōhei_ here are either orphans or the sons of poor peasants, or else people who have suffered in the world and wish to escape. Of course a large part of our duty is to go forth into the world to spread peace, love and understanding where darkness seems to be thriving. Our martial arts training, very much similar to your own ninja training comes in useful as we often have to deal with small-time rogue ninja that terrorise peasants in the isolated countryside. Very few of us, I'm ashamed to say, have the courage and confidence to leave the sanctuary of the Temple, but that is no fault of theirs. We all do what we can. Those who do not leave the Temple work inside, supporting the other monks by farming. All excess crops are given to orphanages and the needy. It's not enough to help the whole country, but it does its part."

"That is really good work," Hinata said softly. "I wish all the other countries thought as much about their citizens as you do."

Chiriku looked over his shoulder at her and smiled. "Thank you for those kind words, Hinata-chan." Hinata did not comment but continued to watch her surroundings as the group continued on its walk.

They eventually made their way into a small building that housed a kitchen and a couple of bedrooms. Chiriku left them to refresh themselves from their long journey and went to get them some steaming hot food. By the time he came back all four Konoha ninja were patiently waiting for him in silence. He set the two trays he was carrying on the floor, and then took the bowls and cutlery off the trays and arranged them on the floor in a calm and ritualistic manner that indicated he had done this many times before.

"Please, help yourselves," Chiriku said. The Konoha ninja did not need to be told twice and dug in with much gusto. Only Hinata and Sai maintained a quiet dignity that allowed them eat like pigs without actually looking like it. Chiriku waited in silence, his gaze far away, until they had finished eating. He then drew four slim manila folders from his robes and handed each ninja one.

"These folders contain information I thought relevant to the case. I have compiled information on the Twelve Guardian Ninja, particularly on the ones that are buried and under this temple's protection. Seeing as our _Daimyo_, the _Fire Daimyo_, was very secretive about his bodyguards and did not publicise much about them, you would have to ask one of the Guardian Ninja themselves to know much about them. Fortunately, I am one such person. I have put in those folders all I know about my former comrades, and though I was unable to draw any links from that information to why these grave robberies are occurring, I had hoped you four might."

"If an accomplished ninja like you can't, I don't think we'd be able to," Yamato said as he started perusing his folder.

"That is nice of you to say," Chiriku replied, "but I am sure an ANBU like you has better eyes for this sort of thing."

The whole room went silent as four startled faces gazed at Chiriku's calm one. "How did you know?" Sakura asked.

"It is apparent for those who have the eyes to see," Chiriku replied. After it became apparent he would not elaborate, the four ninja went back to reading their folders. The first few pages, which dealt largely with the back story and history of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, yielded no revelations as to the motivation of the grave robberies. The pages after that held information on the grave sites, what had been found there and the kind of protections around the sites. It was the last few pages that held a surprise, for three of the four Konoha shinobi, for they contained the profiles on each of the Twelve Guardian Ninja. Sakura gasped as she looked at the last page. There was a picture of an extremely beautiful woman with silky, flowing red hair, intense green eyes and a very cheeky smile. If it hadn't been for the apparent carefree nature shown by the picture, and the pose she held, the name next to the picture certainly did it.

"Uzumaki Kushina," Sakura read out to herself in a whisper. "Age unknown … Height 147cm … Weight 47kg … Blood Type B … Favourite food was salt ramen … Favourite saying was … "Don't give up until the end.""

"Certainly sounds familiar, doesn't it?" Hinata said, her unwavering eyes on the picture.

"Oh my God," Sakura breathed. "This is Naruto's mother!"

"And he was very upset when he found out his mother's grave had been disturbed," Hinata said, her eyes still on the picture.

"What!?" Sakura said as her head whipped round to look at Hinata. "You never mentioned this before."

"I chose to turn a blind eye to the look in Naruto-san's eyes, but I cannot deny it anymore. I am pretty sure Naruto-san is at this moment tracking down the people who robbed his mother's grave, even as we are tracking them. That is why he did not come back to the village with Jiraiya-sama and I."

"This complicates things," Yamato said. "Now we'll have to deal with an emotional son who is out for revenge."

"No, you won't," Hinata interjected. "Naruto-san is very mature. He won't hinder our mission."

"I hope not," Yamato said as he also looked at the picture of the Kyuubi no Yoko's container. "I really hope not."

Chiriku looked from Sakura to Hinata, his expression grave. "You know Kushina's son well?"

"He was my team mate on my genin cell," Sakura replied.

"And there's something you regret regarding him," Chiriku added, his eyes never wavering from her own. Sakura tried to hold his piercing gaze but faltered after a few seconds and looked down. She did not reply.

"He and I were on a training mission for three years. We have become good friends." Hinata too seemed emotional but this time Chiriku decided not to question her further. Some things were meant to remain secret.

"I see," Chiriku said finally. "Please, if you meet him, tell him that I wish to speak with him. Konoha's Council denied me access to him for twelve long years, despite the fact that I was the only link he had to his family history. Maybe it was because my allegiance was to the Land of Fire and not Konohagakure no Sato, and therefore they thought I might take away their J … that I might take him away from the village."

Hinata did not give any outward sign, but she tensed inwardly. _That was a very deliberate slip on his part,_ she thought. _He has intense eyes, and I cannot read him, but my instinct tells me he intentionally almost gave away Naruto's nature as a __**J**__**inchūriki**__. But what purpose would that serve? This monk is more complicated than he seems.___

"They might have had good reason," Yamato interjected, his face calm. Whatever happened, he was sure he did not want to start a fight with this man. Aside from the fact that he was almost certain he would be beaten, he was surrounded by hundreds of men with shinobi training and could easily pass for chunin and even jonin.

"Perhaps," Chiriku commented without rancour. "But now I am not one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja and only approach Naruto as his mother's old friend. Besides, he is sixteen years old and after everything he has undoubtedly had to deal with I think we can both agree he is more than mature enough to make his own decisions." Yamato tried to stare out Chiriku but after a few seconds the amount of purity and truth in the abbot's eyes was too much for him to handle. He looked away with an expression of slight shame on his face.

"I haven't seen Naruto in years. How is he, Hinata?" Sakura's voice trembled slightly.

Hinata turned to Sakura and smiled. "In all our time together he never stopped talking about you."

Three things shocked Sakura then. First was the fact that Hinata had smiled. She realised that in the years she had known Hinata, she had never seen the girl smile. Hinata's shy and unconfident demeanour meant she almost always never looked up. The second thing was that when Hinata smiled it was like the sun rising. She was transformed into a beautiful young kunoichi. Because Hinata rarely showed her face, Sakura had never realised just how much of a blossoming flower Hinata was. The third and most shocking thing was that Naruto had not stopped talking about her. After the way she had stormed off crying from his hospital room three and a half years ago, and the terrible things she had said, she had not thought for a second she would remain in Naruto's good graces. She had been meaning to apologise to her team mate for three and a half years, and the guilt she had been feeling over her accusations had been eating away at her. She lied when she said Tsunade kept her too busy to do anything else, although Tsunade definitely was a harsh taskmaster. The truth was that she worked herself into exhaustion so she wouldn't have time to dwell on the past. It was simply too painful to bear.

"Re … Really?" Sakura stuttered.

"Yes," Hinata laughed, her eyes closed. "He always said, "I can't wait for Sakura-chan to see how strong I've gotten!" every time he learnt something new. He hasn't forgotten his promise to you. He still intends to rescue Sasuke-kun from Orochimaru. That goal has been at the forefront of his mind during our training mission, and he's worked hard so he could fulfil his promise to you."

_Naruto… _Sakura thought. _You idiot. Even after everything you still insist on keeping your word … that is your __**Nindo**__, you Way of the Ninja, after all. But were you just saying all those things so Hinata wouldn't know just how much I wronged you, or are you truly so much of an idiot that you would never think ill of me?_

_Both these girls carry much pain,_ Chiriku thought. _Hinata, such a gentle soul, closed her eyes so that Sakura wouldn't see how much pain Naruto's devotion toward Sakura has hurt her. And whatever Sakura did or said, it haunts her to this day. Perhaps it was fated for these grave robberies to occur. It has brought together three young souls who are in need of catharsis and reconciliation. I have absolute faith that everything will be fine. It is God's will I follow now, and he would not abandon younglings to suffer._

Just then a monk burst into the room. "Chiriku-sama, we have just received word from the southern burial site! There's a dense fog surrounded the site and the watchers are sure its being robbed!"

"Let's move!" Yamato ordered.

XXX

Naruto waited patiently after he'd done what he'd set out to. It was all he could do. The trap was well laid. He'd just have to trust in his skills and hope everything worked out well. He couldn't see through the mist, but his other senses were extremely sharp. He was twenty-three meters from where the perpetrators were likely to emerge, which was nothing considering he could pick out the sound of a pin falling in the midst of a battle from up to forty meters away. And while he wasn't a chakra sensing type, he had an abundant supply of chakra and had had to learn about suppressing and tracking chakra. Otherwise he would be a liability as his large chakra could be easily sensed whereas he couldn't sense others' chakra. Hinata-hime had always been better at it than him, but considering she possessed the Byakugan he had always jokingly referred to all her accomplishments as cheating as no normal shinobi could compare to the chakra sensitive Hyūga. But still, he was expert enough, and at that moment he sensed the criminals coming out of the tunnel.

And at the same time he sensed four ninja break through the perimeter he had set up immediately outside the mist. They were strong, too, because he'd set up traps to discourage anyone from venturing further. The last thing he needed was a distraction while he dealt with the grave robbers.

_Shit,_ Naruto thought. _Are these ninja some sort of backup then? And if not then who are they and what do they want? They are not the Temple of Fire __**sohei **__I saw during my recon earlier, of that I'm sure. Whoever they are, their chakra is more yang inclined. A couple of chakras feel familiar though… Well, the only thing I can do at this moment is to wait and see. If they turn out to be an enemy, my trap will just as easily incapacitate them. In the meantime…_

Naruto formed the ram hand seal and went completely still. After ten seconds had passed he formed thirteen hand seals in quick succession, five of them new ones he'd invented.

"**Yorunotobari no jutsu**." Veil of Darkness technique. Naruto's form slowly became more and more indistinct until only his eyes were left, and then they too disappeared. He was perfectly invisible.

XXX

"Hinata, you will take point. Sai will bring up the left and I will bring up the right. Sakura, as our medic-nin you will bring up the rear. We aren't sure of what we'll encounter so we need you at the safest possible position."

"Hai!"

"Our visibility has been compromised with this Mist jutsu, so keep silent and stay in formation. Hinata, we'll be depending on you to get us through this mist in one piece, so keep a sharp eye."

"Hai!"

"We are facing very skilled shinobi, so I don't want any of you taking unnecessary risks. Squad, move in!"

"Hai!"

The four ninja advanced into the mist slowly, their forms tense and alert. They knew where the entrance to the tomb was located, so all they had to do was approach it and accost whoever came out. But even as they entered the mist Hinata held up a fist, which they could just make out. They stopped instantly. In front of them a shadowy form was slowly becoming distinct.

"Your formation betrays you as Konoha ninja. For a second there I was worried the monks from the Temple of Fire had come looking for a fight. Very few of them are highly skilled, but if there are enough bodies numbers can count against even ninja as skilled as I am."

The mist was slowly dissipating, and within a few seconds the Konoha ninja could make out a middle-aged man with long white hair, a face that really couldn't be called handsome – or ugly – and very intense brown eyes. He wore extravagant white robes, which made him look like some sort of holy man, and the effect was only increased by the fact that he held in his right hand a _khakkhara_, also known as a _shakujō_. The khakkhara is a multi-section monk staff carried by Buddhists, and one of the eighteen essential items all Buddhist monks are expected to carry. The _shakujō_ was roughly one hundred and seventy-five centimetres long and made out of metal, with a thirty centimetre diameter ring at the top. On top of the ring was a five centimetre spike, and while it wasn't very sharp it could certainly do some damage. There were four smaller rings around the large ring, and like the ring itself and the spike, they were golden in colour, whilst the shaft of the staff was black. There were two golden bands on the shaft, and Yamato hazarded a guess that this was where the staff could split and thereby extend its reach. The butt of the staff was also golden.

"You are a skilled ninja," the man said as he gazed at Yamato. "In the span of five seconds you have assessed me and my weapon, gauged what my abilities could be from your observations and I bet you already have some counters planned." The man laughed when none of the Konoha ninja reacted to his statement. "Ah, I'd forgotten what a pleasure Konoha ninja can be to fight. I see nothing's changed about the way you are trained. But all the credit must go to the Hokage, of course. Konoha's Black Ops, the ANBU, have always been one of the best in all of the countries."

"I think Yamato-taichou is getting a bit peeved," Hinata said conversationally as she reached behind her back for her weapons pouch.

"Yeah," Sakura agreed. "In the space of two hours two separate men have managed to identify him as ANBU within seconds of meeting him."

"Hokage-sama is going to be quite displeased with him," Hinata teased.

"Shut up," Yamato retorted with all the eloquence at his command.

"You think this is a joking matter?" The man's eyes had gone flat and dangerous, and his voice had gained an edge to it. "Always like Konoha ninja. Even in the face of overwhelming odds you arrogantly assume you will come out on top."

"It sounds like you bear ill will towards Konohagakure no Sato," Yamato observed calmly. "Who are you and why are you robbing the graves of the Twelve Guardian Ninja?"

"It is more than ill will; I can assure you of that. You will find out in due course what I have planned for you village, and for this great land of ours. As for my name, you may call me … Furido. As for the why, my motives will become clear in time. And now I must be leaving. I have stayed for far too long, I'm afraid. However, I'm sure my colleagues will be more than happy to keep you company."

_He was stalling!_ Yamato realised a nanosecond before there was a large explosion from the entrance of the tomb. By this time the mist had completely cleared and the Konoha ninja could clearly see the coffin that burst from the entrance, leaving behind a pile of smoking rubble. A man and a woman were stood on the coffin, but they jumped as soon as they exited the tomb, landing beside the Buddhist monk look-alike.

"These two are some of my followers. On my right is Fuyu and on my left is Fuen." Furido jumped backwards onto the coffin and said to his two subordinates, "Play with them for a while and cover my rear. It wouldn't do to be stopped this close to our goal."

"Hai, Furido-san," Fuyu replied. He stepped forward and faced the Konoha ninja squarely.

"Fuen, you will be his backup in case they prove to be more skilful than they appear."

"Hai, Furido-san," Fuen replied.

"You should never underestimate Konoha ninja," Sai said, his emotionless monotone making the statement all that more surprising.

"I will never underestimate Konoha ninja again, of that you can be assured." Something in his voice, and the look in his eyes, gave his words more power.

"So you've fought Konoha ninja before?" Yamato asked.

"That, unfortunately, is a discussion for another time. Goodbye."

XXX

Naruto watched the developments with increasing interest. The bodies belonged to the Twelve Guardian Ninja. This explained what his mother had done with her life after she escaped the cataclysm in the former Land of the Whirlpool. The thought filled him with pride. Only the best ninja were chosen to join the Twelve Guardian Ninja. After all, a country's shinobi village only flourished not only from getting missions but also if it was in the good graces of its daimyo, its feudal lord. The case in the Land of Wind when the daimyo had gone behind Sunagakure no Sato's back and given missions to other shinobi villages like Konoha was a prime example of this. The Kazekage had been forced to make an alliance with Orochimaru to destroy Konoha so that the daimyo would recognise Suna's strength and endorse the village once more. Therefore as long as the daimyo felt protected and safe and had complete faith in the shinobi of his country, he would look favourably on the military strength of his nation, namely the shinobi village.

So his mother had joined the Twelve Guardian Ninja, theoretically making her a Konoha shinobi. Did that mean that his father was also a Konoha shinobi? It fit the timeline. Naruto was born sixteen and a half years previously, and Uzumaki Kushina disappeared from Whirlpool country immediately after the cataclysm, just like the rest of the Uzumaki Clan. She was first spotted in the Land of Fire twenty years previously, but like all other Uzumakis who'd survived the cataclysm (Naruto had only managed to find out of four) her presence soon disappeared. The only logical conclusion was that someone hid her, and all signs pointed to a Konoha shinobi. After all, no one was inducted into the Twelve Guardian Ninja without a thorough background check from Konoha's ANBU. So whoever this ninja in Konoha was, he – or she – had a lot of clout with the establishment. The Fire Daimyo also knew of her real identity, Naruto knew this for certain for no shinobi would be discourteous or stupid enough to lie and mislead their feudal lord, so the Fire Daimyo must have agreed with the reasons for keeping her identity secret. Naruto was hardly going to get a chance to see the Daimyo, much less actually get answers from him, so the best place to start looking for answers was Konoha itself. According to the timescale, the suspect pool for people who could have known his mother's true identity was very small.

But that speculation was for later. At that moment Hinata-hime, Sakura-chan and two other guys he didn't recognise looked like they might need his help. The leader, the one dressed like a Buddhist monk, Furido was his name, gave off a very powerful and dangerous chakra. The other two, the man and the woman, also did, but to a much lesser extent. Whoever this Furido was, he was a dangerous man and a powerful ninja. And since he obviously held ill will toward Konoha, whatever he was doing with former Land of Fire shinobi was bound to mean bad news for Konoha. In short, until he revealed his plan and all his accomplices, damage control needed to be implemented. Furido needed to be watched closely; let go, but within surveillance parameters.

XXX

Hinata had noticed the trap as soon as they entered the mist, and instantly she knew just who had set it up. It was _his_ style, after all. But she had looked at every nook and cranny within the range of her Byakugan, which was quite a large area, but she couldn't find him. This meant that he was using _that_ jutsu. No technique, not even _doujutsu_, eye techniques like her Byakugan, could perceive it, at least none she had ever heard of. She was sure of one thing, however; Naruto was nearby. It was not only the physical evidence that led her to believe this, but also a gut feeling she couldn't deny. The object of her affection was very close indeed. He had tracked these people who had been robbing the graves and had set up a trap to capture them. The fact that he hadn't activated the trap meant he had noticed their arrival. But the trap still remained, ready to be activated. All that needed to be done was to remove the Konoha ninja from within the blast range and the enemy could be captured. …But … Naruto knew this. He was skilled enough to sneak up on at least of the criminals without being detected. So why hadn't he done so? He could have disabled one ninja and then they could have retreated to question either Fuyu or Fuen, whichever one Naruto disabled. No, Naruto was thinking of something different. Could he … could he possibly be thinking of letting the enemy go? Hinata dismissed it at first, but after another second's thought, she realised it was exactly what Naruto was thinking. By letting at least Furido go, they could track him and find any other accomplices, and they might also discover what Furido's motives and plans were. But to be able to track Furido, Naruto would have to … he would have to distract the monk look-alike long enough to sneak up on him and mark him.

This led back to the trap. The trap would definitely catch Furido's attention, and with any luck it might also disable one or both of the enemy ninja. Team Yamato needed to back away from the immediate vicinity. So it was when Hinata said, "I think Yamato-taichou is getting a bit peeved," she pretended to reach for her weapons pouch. IN actual fact she started using hand signals to alert her team mates to the situation. She was on point so everyone else was behind her. With any luck they would see her hand signals, decipher them and be prepared to move on her mark. Throughout Furido's speech and Yamato's questions – questions which were designed to stall for time – Hinata condensed as much information as she could into the signalling; _Naruto-san is here. He plans to let Furido escape. A trap is set, a variation of the __**Kekkai**__**Hōjin**__, the __Barrier Encampment Method. On my mark, retreat twenty metres from my position._

It took the other Konoha ninja a few seconds to notice Hinata's subtly moving hand, but seeing as all of them had extensive training in observation they soon realised what their team mate was doing.

_Naruto is here!_ Sakura thought with a rush of emotion, emotion she managed to keep from showing.

_Good_, Yamato thought. _We have an ally the enemy is not aware of. This will help us greatly_.

Sai was apathetic to the new development.

Furido was standing on the levitating coffin at this point. "That, unfortunately, is a discussion for another time. Goodbye."

"Now!" Hinata ordered. All four members of Team Yamato used the **Shunshin no jutsu**, the Body Flicker technique, and retreated twenty metres within the blink of an eye, which cost them quite a bit of chakra.

At the same time Naruto's intense blue eye, his right one, the only visible one, appeared behind Furido. "**Fūton****: ****Fūbaku Hojin**." Wind Release: Sealed Bomb Square Release. Naruto had created the technique basing it off the normal Sealed Bomb Square Release. The normal technique placed exploding tags in a square, much like the Barrier Encampment Method technique. The tags would then explode when an enemy tried to move or if the user of the technique activated the trap with a hand seal. The Wind Release version of the technique Naruto had created was much more powerful and complex. Instead of exploding tags, Naruto had put containment seals in a square immediately in front of the tomb. The seals would then contain the massive gusts of winds that would tear apart anything within the contained range.

Below the hovering coffin winds powerful enough to uproot trees and cut them to pieces picked up from nowhere. Fuen, who had always been a strategist and a long range fighter, recognised a fraction of a second before Fuyu that they had been trapped. This is all that saved her. Even with a quickly executed Body Flicker technique Fuen received extensive and deep cuts to her arms and torso. Fuyu was not so lucky. Within a couple of seconds most of his body was bleeding heavily. He did not even have time to scream. After four seconds the amount of dust kicked up hid him from view. Furido watched this with growing fascination. He'd detected no trap, and he was pretty sure that none of the Konoha ninja had time to set it up. This meant that there had already been someone at the sight of the tomb who had been waiting to ambush them. The girl who had taken point in the Konoha team had possessed the Byakugan, so she must have spotted the trap. The fact that the Konoha team's retreat coincided with the trap's activation meant that either this new opponent was working with the Konoha shinobi – possibly a Konoha shinobi himself – or else he or she was well acquainted with someone on the team. The Hyūga girl had sounded the retreat, so she must be the inside contact. All of this had happened without a hitch, a perfectly executed trap. As a result, one of his men, a skilled ninjutsu user, was either mortally wounded or dead altogether. He smiled. It looked like he was going to have some fun after all.

A footfall.

Furido twirled around instantly with the reaction of a ninja with a large amount of battle experience. His _shakujō_ was held tightly in both hands, ready to decapitate whoever had managed to sneak up on him. It was quite a feat, a small part of his mind reflected. In his past his job had called for him to be better than the ANBU at detecting surprise attacks. The fact that this person had struck not once but twice, without Furido being none the wiser, was a great cause for concern. Had Konoha ninja really gotten this skilled, or was he fighting an extremely skilled opponent? As he turned a complete one hundred and eighty degrees he saw nothing but a bright blue eye coming at him. In another fraction of a second whatever technique had been hiding the ninja was lifted and for a full second Furido managed to get a look at his new enemy. The kid, for it was undoubtedly a kid, didn't even look eighteen yet. His blonde hair was spiky and long, coming down to his waist. A thick lock of it was suspended in front of his left eye. The kid was also wearing some strange looking scaled crimson armour with attached pauldrons, greaves on his shins and vambraces on his forearms.

The kid ducked beneath Furido's staff, and Furido immediately let it drop. As the blonde haired kid came in with a punch, Furido sidestepped him, caught the arm, pivoted on his left foot and threw the kid off the coffin. As the kid fell through the air, he turned round and his one eye locked with Furido's dark ones. Furido smiled, and Fuen suddenly appeared behind him.

"I think we should go," Fuen said.

"Agreed." As the coffin fled through the night sky, Furido's last sight was of the hitai-ate, the forehead protector, of the blonde kid. The Konoha symbol was glinting proudly in the moonlight.


	4. Chapter 4: Naruto Has Changed

As Naruto fell toward the ground he formed the dragon hand seal and channelled his chakra outward from all three hundred and sixty-one of his tenketsu, his chakra pressure points. He then manipulated the chakra into wind nature so that when he was within range of the trap he had activated, the intense winds did not harm him whatsoever. Instead he manipulated them to slow down his fall, and while he floated toward the ground, he formed the serpent hand seal.

"**Doton: Dochū Eigyo no Jutsu**." Earth Release: Underground Projection Fish Technique.

When Naruto reached the ground he melted into it smoothly, without a ripple. After sinking two meters he stopped moving, turned to face forward and moved through the ground until he was outside the range of the trap and also underneath the Konoha ninja. When he emerged from the ground his shadow clone was standing over Sakura-chan as the pink haired medical ninja set about healing the worst of Fuyu's cuts. Upon seeing Naruto's arrival the shadow clone cancelled the technique and disappeared in a puff of white smoke.

"That was smartly executed," a voice said from above. Naruto looked up into the trees and recognised the Jōnin that was leading the Konoha team. "You set a controlled trap, and when the situation changed you changed your plan with the bigger picture in mind. By letting this Furido go we can investigate further. I can see why you were considered for the rank of Chūnin when you took the exam. "Always thinking of the next step, and never of defeat." That's how Hayate-san described you."

Naruto grinned and scratched his head. "Did they really consider me for Chūnin? I guess I'm more awesome that I thought!"

_This is the person who just caused all that mayhem?_ Yamato wondered sceptically. _He's so … childish. I can see what Kakashi-senpai meant about him._ Yamato looked at the area where the trap was beginning to calm down, with most of the dust starting to settle. _But still, if this trap is any indication then he's strong. And I saw his eyes when he attacked Furido – or his right eye at least. He meant business then. How can he switch it off and on like that?_

"What kind of trap is that?" Yamato asked, nodding toward the burial site.

"Iruka-sensei taught me the principles behind the Sealed Bomb Square Release, so I just improved on them a bit to create my **Wind Release: Sealed Bomb Square Release**. Instead of an implosion that kills anything within the target area, I use wind, which is more versatile as it gives me the option of disabling my opponents as well as killing them. Fuyu here is an example."

"And you waited until the dust had hidden him before your shadow clone removed him so that Furido would think he's dead," Yamato reflected appreciatively. "But the name of your technique … shouldn't you at least remove the "Bomb" from it? It seems a bit of a misnomer."

"Oh, the "Bomb" applies," Naruto said earnestly as he crouched down opposite Sakura. "I limited the power of my trap because I did not want to kill anyone. At its full strength my technique would release powerful winds, which would then be ignited, incinerating everything within the target area. Not even the bones would survive. Besides, I wanted the kunoichi to escape. This way she bears a grudge toward me and is much more likely to get emotional and make mistakes when fighting me."

"Hm," Yamato grunted.

"There," Sakura said. "He's stable now."

"Great!" Naruto shouted. "Now we can begin!"

Sakura's punch came out of nowhere and hurt about as much a stampede of elephants. Naruto was lifted off his feet and smashed into a tree trunk ten metres behind. Yamato looked askance at Sakura, his face twitching and a nervous look in his eye.

_What incredible strength … and that was only a "friendly" punch…_

"Ouch!" Naruto screamed after he'd regained his senses. "What was that for, Sakura-chan?"

"For scaring me!" Sakura screamed. "I don't hear from you in three and a half years and suddenly you're chasing enemy ninja all over the place and plunging into a fatal trap, which you made by the way! It's just like you to do things without thinking! What if you'd died?"

"I'm still alive aren't I?" Naruto said hesitantly as he got up, wanting to calm her down with a positive fact. It didn't work.

"That's not the point!" By this point Sakura had walked up to Naruto, and she realised that he'd grown taller, much taller. She had to look up to see into his eyes. "Oh, Naruto!" She suddenly hugged him, fiercely, never wanting to let him go. Naruto blinked down at her before he hesitantly put his arms around her.

"Hey, calm down Sakura-chan. It's alright."

"Oh, Naruto, I'm so sorry!"

"Don't worry about it," Naruto replied.

Sakura forced herself to put some distance between her and Naruto. She looked into his eyes, her own vision a bit blurry with tears. "About what I said the last time, Naruto, I'm so sorry."

"Hey, Sakura-chan," Naruto said, his left hand on top of her head. He was smiling broadly just like the idiot he was back in their Genin days. "I told you; it's alright." It took Sakura a few seconds to realise that was it. Three and a half years of guilt and regret and Naruto had forgiven her within half a minute of seeing her again. It was just like him. She smiled up at him. _Thank you, Naruto-kun._

"Right, now let's get down to it!" Naruto said as he walked toward the supine form of Fuyu. "Hinata-hime?"

"I've already set it up," Hinata said from deeper into the tree line. Naruto picked up Fuyu with one hand as he made his way toward Hinata. She was standing over a small earthen mound with minute black writing going up it in five places. Naruto stood Fuyu upright and let the ninja slowly get swallowed by the mound until only his head was visible.

"What are you doing?" Yamato asked and he and Sakura came up behind Naruto.

"Breaking into his mind," Naruto said. "The technique is similar to that employed by Ibiki in Interrogation and the Yamanaka Clan. It's part genjutsu and part ninjutsu. Hinata-hime will use her special skills to alter the flow of his chakra, making his mind weaker and easier for me to deceive and ultimately gather whatever memories and information I can. I don't expect much, though. Furido looked like the type of guy to play his cards close to his chest."

"That sounds complicated," Yamato commented. "I had hoped you would have a better way to keep track of Furido."

"With the two of us, it isn't all that complicated," Naruto said as he started forming hand seals. Hinata mirrored him. "Hinata's abilities gained from her Byakugan and the Jyūken will physically and mentally relax and calm Fuyu, making it far easier to break into his mind. My will is much stronger than his, of that I'm sure, so he won't be able to resist me for long. And I do have a way of keeping Furido within surveillance reach. When he threw me off the coffin I placed a _jutsu-shiki_ on him, a jutsu formula. It emits my chakra on a very high frequency, so I will be able to sense it as long as he's within twenty kilometres. One of my shadow clones is already tracking him from afar, so we'll soon know where his base of operations is."

"Good," Yamato nodded. "Well, I'll guess I'll go and keep Sai company and guard you two until you are finished."

XXX

"So, what have you found out?" Yamato asked as the five Konoha ninja sat around a small fire.

"Precious little with regards to Furido's ultimate plan," Naruto said as he stared deep into the flames. "But still I was nevertheless able to gather some info on the enemy." Naruto picked up a small amount of soil and ran it absently through his fingers. "Furido recruited his underlings eighteen months ago. Fudo was first. He is a taijutsu and Earth element ninjutsu user who is gifted in both areas – he seems to possess great physical strength and speed on top of being an Earth nature chakra type, which makes his fighting style powerful and dangerous. He stands at just about six feet and two inches, wears dark clothes most of the time, has long and unruly black hair, brown eyes, and a black tattoo marking on each cheek. He is a missing-nin from Iwagakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Rocks."

"The second recruit is a kunoichi named Fuka, another missing-nin, apparently from Kirigakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Water. She seems extremely powerful. Her taijutsu and genjutsu abilities are average, if that, but her ninjutsu is quite … frightening."

"What do you mean by frightening?" Sakura asked.

"She can use nature manipulation for all five elements," Naruto said.

"What!?" Yamato demanded, shocked.

"She can use all five elements," Naruto repeated. "Although she doesn't seem able to use fusion techniques as of yet, she can nevertheless perform differently natured ninjutsu in quick succession, which requires an extra-ordinary level of skill and concentration, as well as a large chakra pool. Of the entire team, she has the largest chakra reserves, which apparently makes her a requirement for whatever Furido has planned. She is quite pretty, with shoulder length red hair, black eyes and a slim figure. She seems to always dress provocatively in dark red clothing. She stands at five feet and nine inches. Oh, by the way, don't kiss her."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Sai asked. Naruto looked at him. He'd never seen the boy before and was curious about him. Sai's emotionless face and his polite mannerisms were even more aloof than Shino's. He hadn't been in their graduation class, and even though he looked a little bit older than Naruto, Naruto was nevertheless sure he'd never seen Sai at the Academy. Where had he come from? The way Yamato constantly and surreptitiously watched him meant that Sai must represent some other faction, possibly within Konoha. … Did that mean that this boy was possibly a member of Né, of Root, then? If that was true it raised the question of why Danzō would want one of his henchmen as a publicly active Konoha shinobi. Naruto thought of the possibilities and the timing and suspected he might know why…

"Fuka has the ability to kill her enemies by simply kissing them. Fuyu did not know what kind of technique it was nor any other specifics, but Furido has used Fuka to assassinate several merchants and even a few lesser feudal lords in the last ten months. Fuyu did not object. On the contrary, she seems something of a vixen and subscribes to a perverted hedonistic way of life. The feudal lords Furido has had assassinated are disparate and seem randomly selected, which is why neither the Konoha shinobi nor the ANBU has as of yet picked up a pattern that would indicate a puppeteer hidden in the shadows. But if you look at the bigger picture, you will begin to get a sense of what Furido may be aiming toward. He has had Fuyu assassinate three eastern feudal lords, among them Ichirou-sama, and some of the merchants he's had assassinated include Genji of the Wave, Hideo Akira and Masamura. What links all of these?"

"Konoha," Sai said with narrowed eyes.

"Precisely," Naruto replied. "All these people in some way aid Konoha. Ichirou-sama and his fellow eastern lords provide the mines and smithies that supply Konoha with over eighty percent of all its weaponry. And it is well known that Ichirou-sama's son, his inheritor and the new Shinji province daimyo, desires to break the contract his grandfather formed with Konoha and expand into the no-man's land that borders Fire Country, Sound Country and Lightning Country."

"He's weakening Konoha!" Yamato realised.

"The large number of platoons Tsunade has been ordering to the east," Sakura said in shock. "This new daimyo, in exchange for keeping the contract, is going to expand his territory and those of the other eastern lords into the no-man's land, and with the help of Konoha ninja any resistance by either Otogakure, Kumogakure or any free ninja clans that might be in the area. And because it's going to be on such a small scale, it isn't likely to start a war so the Fire Daimyo won't object. Meanwhile because the merchants have been assassinated Konoha's food supply has been lessened drastically. Not enough to actually cause a panic, but the economy has been damaged, which is why Tsunade was forced to send out more ninja to the south and west to make sure our supplies reach Konoha safely. Between these two incidences and the normal demand for missions, Konoha's military strength is stretched thin."

"Furido is going to attack Konoha," Hinata said softly.

"Now that he is actively breaking the law and robbing the graves of former Fire Country ninja, I would say that he's going to attack very soon," Naruto agreed.

And my duty is to protect Konoha, Sai thought. That is Danzo-sama's will. … This Uzumaki Naruto is more capable than I thought. He was able to connect seemingly random dots with scant information. And he managed to keep up with Fire Country politics during his training mission, on top of which his fighting skills are quite good, if that trap and the mind-breaking technique are anything to go by.

After absorbing the information Sakura was stricken by the same thought. Naruto had really grown. He could barely think when we were genin, let alone strategise like this. Don't tell me that after all my training I'm still trailing behind those two…

He's more capable than Kakashi-senpai outlined. I guess these are the fruits of his training. I'm glad too; otherwise this mission would have become even more troublesome than it already is. Yamato mentally nodded as he came to a decision.

"And lastly," Naruto continued, "we come to Fuen, the other kunoichi on the enemy's squad. Although she is a missing-nin, Fuyu did not know from which hidden village she deserted. She is regarded as the weakest of the group. Her strengths lie in forming quick analyses of situations and strategising defences, attacks and counterattacks that rarely fail. She also uses ninjutsu, and sometimes with the help of her comrades, to change the terrain and trap an enemy, which she finishes off at leisure with many, concealed traps. You have already seen her. Of Furido, the only thing Fuyu saw was that he is a skilled taijutsu user and that he knows quite a bit about Fūinjutsu, Sealing techniques. That's all I was able to learn."

"Very well," Yamato said. "Good job. One of us needs to get this intel and Fuyu back to Konoha as quick as possible. I am team leader so I have to stay here, Sakura is our medic-nin so she is needed here as well, and Naruto here is keeping track of the enemy's movements so he needs to be here as well. That leaves Hinata and Sai. Any volunteers?"

"I'll go," Sai said, much to everyone's surprise. "I can get to Konoha in an hour from here, an hour and a half if I'm dragging a body behind me."

"Don't actually drag him," Yamato reprimanded humorously. "The Interrogation Unit is going to need him in one piece if they're going to extract any more information from him."

"I won't," Sai said impassively.

"Sheesh, you need to lighten up," Naruto commented as he put his hands behind his head.

Sai frowned. "Lighten … up?" he asked.

"Yeah," Naruto affirmed. "You know, chill, take it easy, relax, take that rod out of your a–"

"What Naruto means," Sakura interrupted, "is that you act all stiff and uptight, and don't really seem to enjoy life."

"Enjoy life? This makes no sense to me. My duty is to protect Konoha and the Fire Country. That is all there is to it. That is my way of life as a shinobi."

"What!?" Naruto yelled.

"We don't have time for this," Yamato cut in sharply. "Sai, take the body back to Konoha immediately and inform the Hokage of what we've learned."

"Hai!"

Suddenly a figure walked out from the surrounding tree line. Yamato, Sakura and Sai pulled out weapons in the blink of an eye until they realised that the person was Naruto.

"What are you doing you idiot?" Sakura shouted. "You nearly scared me to death!"

"Oh?" Naruto grunted from the fire. He looked up and blinked. "Oh yeah, I'd completely forgotten. I had a shadow clone write up all the info about where I'd been and about tonight's events so the old lady wouldn't pester me when I went back to Konoha." As he said this the shadow clone threw a scroll at Naruto before disappearing in a puff of smoke. Just before Naruto caught it he formed the Bird hand seal, and when he did catch it in both hands a bluish haze surrounded it for a second before fading away. Otherwise the scroll seemed unchanged.

"What was that?" Yamato asked.

"It's a sealing jutsu that limits the people who can open the scroll. Would you give it to Tsunade for me, Sai?" Naruto asked, and without waiting for an answer he threw the scroll at Sai, who caught it deftly.

"How will she open it?" Sai asked.

"The scroll responds to chakra. Every person's chakra resonates differently. All she has to do to open the scroll is to channel her chakra into the scroll."

Sai nodded once before he put the scroll in his backpack. He unsheathed his paint brush from its container, removed a scroll from his person and in a flash opened the scroll and drew on it. "**Ninpō: Chōjū Giga**." Ninja Art: Super Beasts Imitation Picture. A huge ink hawk flew from the scroll, which he pocketed as well as sheathing his brush. He jumped up and landed on its back. The hawk circled once, swooped down and grabbed Fuyu in its claws and was off.

"Wow," Naruto said staring wide-eyed at the ever-dwindling figure.

And then Hinata passed out.

XXX

The Konoha ninja were back at the Temple of Fire. Sakura walked out of the Temple's Infirmary looking exhausted but pleased.

"Hinata will be fine," Sakura said. "The Caged Bird Seal is just taking a toll on her mind, that's all. It's meant to be administered to children whose minds and bodies are still growing, but Hinata has done most, if not all, of her mental and physical growth. This has created an imbalance in both her physical and spiritual equilibriums, affected her chakra moulding, her blood-brain barrier and most of all her Byakugan. Using it so soon after the sealing stressed her past her limits. A few days' rest and she'll be fine. I've redressed the balances as best as I can, but she needs to be looked at by someone who's either good with Fūinjutsu or Medical Ninjutsu, preferably both. Tsunade comes to mind, but the people of her Clan will do just as well. We need to take her back to Konoha."

"Are you sure?" Yamato asked.

"Absolutely," Sakura replied. "Her condition is beyond my skills to deal with."

"Very well," Yamato said with a sigh. "It seems like we're going back to Konoha."

"No," Naruto replied. He'd been quiet on the way back to the Temple, despite the fact that he'd borne Hinata all the way. His face was impassive, his frame completely devoid of emotion.

"No?" Yamato asked.

"I am skilled enough in both Medical and Sealing techniques to heal Hinata, although I'll require Sakura-chan's help."

"Are you sure?" Yamato frowned.

"This is very delicate and complicated stuff," Sakura admonished, her face serious. "And therefore this is no time to be acting cool. Hinata needs real help."

"Sakura," Naruto said, and the presence that filled the room shut up both Konoha shinobi. "I know what I'm doing. I've prepared for this day for two years."

"Do it," Yamato said after a few seconds' pause. "The mission is our main objective, and if we can get back on track as soon as possible, that would be most helpful."

Naruto got up and without even looking to see whether or not Sakura was following he entered the room and shut the door behind him.

"Do you think there's something going on between those two?" Yamato mused.

"Naruto? And Hinata?" Sakura was quite surprised. "No, not at all," she said with confidence. "Naruto gets attached closely and easily to his precious people, and when they are in danger he will go to any lengths to save them. It's the kind of guy he is."

"Hmm," was all Yamato said.

XXX

Naruto looked at Hinata's pallid face and his heart constricted. Where was the girl who constantly smiled, loved flowers and enjoyed a good picnic on a sunny day? Seeing Hinata in her weakened state was a new experience to Naruto. Even on their training mission Hinata had never looked so banged up. A rising anger threatened to consume him but he swallowed it down and concentrated on how to make her better. A vision of a smiling Hinata sitting under a cherry blossom tree and wearing a light blue kimono came to his mind. She had never looked as beautiful as she did on that day…

"Naruto?"

Surprised and caught in his reverie, Naruto turned round quickly and saw Sakura standing behind him.

"What's up?" he asked with a frown.

"Do you really know what you're doing? Because if you don't–"

"I know what I'm doing," Naruto interrupted. "I told you, I've been preparing for this for two years. I knew that eventually one of the main house children had to be branded, and odds were good that Hinata would be the unlucky one. I studied the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style quite closely for this and … and other reasons. I know my way round it. I'll be able to alleviate her suffering and create equilibrium between her brain and the **Caged Bird Seal**. I'll need your help, however, to ensue that her body doesn't destroy itself in the process. The most harmless thing that could happen would be a lithium imbalance in the blood-brain barrier, causing her to become bipolar, and the worst … well; the short answer is that she'd die on the table."

Sakura looked at Naruto for a few seconds. He was frowning so hard in concentration that he didn't notice. Sakura felt a slow and regretful smile catch her lips. _He's grown so much…_

"Well, then," Sakura said. "Let's get started!"

XXX

"How did it go?" Yamato asked.

"I delivered the body and the messages without fail," Sai replied.

"Good," Yamato replied.

"Yamato-taichou!" Sakura shouted as she came out the operating room with a smile.

"I'm judging things went well from your smile," Yamato said.

"Better than well," Sakura said. "From the way things went you'd think Naruto was a Hyūga! The Seal on Hinata has been altered accordingly and after a few days' R&R she will be as good as new!"

"That's good to hear," Yamato said with a smile. "Where is Naruto-kun?"

"He's with Hinata-chan," Sakura replied.

Yamato said, "Good," before frowning.

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked.

"Naruto-kun knowing his way around the Hyūga Clan's secret seal might be the issue," Sai replied calmly. "I don't know what has happened while I have been gone, but I can hazard a guess. Hinata-hime was branded with her clan's secret seal, a seal that apparently has no counter. If Naruto-kun, with the aid of medical ninjutsu, can alter it, then reason says with the aid of medical ninjutsu the seal can also be completely removed. If the branch family of the Hyūga clan learned this they might kidnap Naruto, learn what he knows and revolt, throwing the Hyūga clan into a civil war. The fact that someone who is not a Hyūga discovered the secrets of the Hyūga sealing method in itself might cause Hiashi-sama to approach the Hokage for an intervention before the situation escalates into something undesirable. At this moment in time Naruto-kun is a powerful figure in Konoha politics, and a dangerous one at that. I am guessing Yamato-senpai is going to swear all of us to silence until he has reported to the Hokage and the situation is resolved before trouble brews up?"

"I am," Yamato replied. "This is a delicate issue that we're not powerful enough to deal with. Besides, we have our own issues to deal with, namely the mission. So promise me you will not utter a word to _anyone_ until the Hokage tells you otherwise."

"I promise," Sakura said.

"I promise," Sai said.

"I wouldn't trust Sai's promise if I were you," Naruto said from directly behind Sai, a kunai pressed against Sai's carotid artery.

_What the hell?_ Sai thought as he stiffened in surprise. _I didn't even sense him!_

"Na – Naruto!?" Sakura stammered.

_How did he manage to sneak up on two ANBU level operatives without us noticing?_ Yamato thought. _And Sakura was trained in taijutsu by the Godaime herself. She's no pushover._

"What is the meaning of this?" Yamato asked calmly, acting as if nothing momentous had happened.

"Sai is from _Né_, from Root, and therefore the ultimate authority he recognises is not the Godaime Hokage's, Tsunade, but Danzō's. He will undoubtedly report this to Danzō, and seeing as you're ANBU, Yamato-taichou, I don't have to explain to you my train of thought. The best thing we could do would be to assassinate Sai right now and claim he got killed during the mission by Furido or his underlings."

_How can he switch off his killer side with his normal personality like that?_ Yamato wondered again. _He's a completely different person from that other kid who was being punched around by Sakura._

"No," Yamato replied. "Naruto-kun, stand down."

Naruto looked into Yamato's eyes before sheathing his kunai and stepping away from Sai. Sai rubbed his neck gingerly. In all his missions he had never come so close to being killed.

_You are definitely more skilled than I was led to believe, Naruto-kun._

"Why?" Naruto asked impassively as he looked up at the night sky.

"First of all, you are both Konoha shinobi. As the First Hokage set down his teachings and so shall we follow them. Sai is a fellow Konoha shinobi, a comrade, and you do not go around killing comrades. We are all subject to the chain of command, so we can't help what orders we follow. A shinobi is a soldier, after all. Besides, no matter how temporarily, Sai is now part of Team Kakashi and therefore your team mate. You can't kill him and neither can he betray you. This is what it means to be team mates."

"You studied under Kakashi-sensei, didn't you?" Naruto asked with a small smile.

"Yes," Yamato replied. Yamato narrowed his eyes. "I would tell you never to pull a stunt like that again but I have a feeling you wouldn't listen. You weren't really going to kill him, were you? It was just a test."

"Oh, if he ever proved to be a threat to Konoha, my precious people, or myself, I would slit his throat without even blinking. But yeah, this was a test, of sorts. I learned all kinds of interesting things."

"Like what?" Yamato asked.

"Like what they say about Root operatives is true. Sai's heart beat did not change once. I guess they really are raised and trained to be emotionless." Naruto sighed. "Well, I'm bored so I'm going to go explore. Ero-Sennin brought me here to train for a couple of months but I never got much of a chance to look around. He really is a slave driver. Well, bye!"

Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Ero-Sennin?" Yamato asked, dumbfounded.

"Jiraiya-sama," Sakura replied in a world weary voice.

Yamato blinked before he started laughing.

_How can Naruto-kun talk about one of the _Dansetsu no Sannin_ like that?_ Sai wondered. _Is this an example of __…__ bonds?_

XXX

Naruto walked the edge of _Hi no Tera_, the Temple of Fire, whilst lost in thought. How had things changed in Konoha? He smiled as he remembered his first proper look at Sakura-chan. Despite the way he had been behaving around Hinata-hime, behaving as if nothing had happened, inside he had been torn up. But seeing her again had resolved things for him. He didn't hold a grudge. That was good. He'd been worried he had changed into a heartless killer but seeing that he could be the old Naruto around his friends had restored his confidence. Naruto suddenly stopped walking as he sensed a large mass of rage filled chakra. He frowned. He'd sensed that kind of chakra before… Breaking into a run he headed in the direction of the chakra, his mind trying to figure out where he could have sensed such chakra before. He finally arrived at one of the five training fields located in the north-west sector of _Hi no Tera_, the Temple of Fire. Despite the fact that it was well kempt Naruto could tell the training field was abandoned – there was a distinct lack of marks, gouged earth, scorch marks e.t.c. In the farthest edge of the training field, where the field met with a mountain, Naruto found a young monk wielding a Triple-Bladed Claw in his left hand. It was clear the monk was training, but what surprised Naruto were the techniques the monk was training.

_He can use __**Hien**__, the Flying Swallow?_ Naruto wondered with mild surprise. _That takes most ninja twenty years to master. But then again this is _Hi no Tera_, the Temple of Fire, where they are said to possess the power of __**Senzoku no Sai**__, the Gift of the Hermit Group, a power said to call upon divine intervention if the user is pure enough. And after training here I know just how powerful these shinobi can get if they train as hard as Chiriku-sama._

"Who's there?" the young monk suddenly said looking around.

_Interesting_, Naruto thought. _He didn't sense me but somehow knows I'm – no, he knows _someone's_ here. Wait a minute__…_

Naruto formed the tiger seal and his right eye began to shine a little bit. The young monk's face came into focus as if Naruto was standing in front of him.

_I know that face!_ Naruto realised. _I've been dreaming about it ever since I came back into the Fire Country! What does this mean!? __…__ Ok, Naruto, calm down. This investigation requires patience. First of all, how about I introduce myself to the man of my dreams __…__ he, he, he, boy does that sound gay._

Naruto suddenly appeared ten metres in front of the monk.

"Hey," Naruto said. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto. What's your name?"

The monk sized him up before sneering. "Sora. Now get lost."

"That's not very nice," Naruto said. "Konoha shinobi are here to help you, after all."

"We don't need your help!" Sora shouted. "We can handle things on our own!"

"Not from what I've seen. These grave robberies have got you monks all stirred up. Chiriku-sama even came begging us to help."

_Temperamental young monk, aren't you? Let's see if that riles you up,_ Naruto thought.

"Why, you…" Sora growled and without preamble slashed his Triple-Bladed Claw through the air. "**Fūton: Jūha Shō**!" Wind Release: Beast Wave Palm!

A horizontal wave of wind natured chakra came slicing towards Naruto. Naruto smiled. When the attack was a hair's breath away from his face he cut through it vertically with his right hand, splitting the attack in two. Both split halves went on to gouge deep holes in the surrounding mountain.

"Impressive Fūton jutsu," Naruto complimented lightly.

"What!? How did you do that!?" Sora asked in a surprised manner.

"Naruto!"

Both young shinobi looked up to see Sakura-chan waving from a ridge above them.

"Let's save this chat for another time, eh?" Naruto replied. He formed the tiger hand seal, disappeared in a puff of smoke, and reappeared a fraction of a second later beside Sakura-chan.

_That was a fast __**Shunshin no Jutsu**__!_ Sora thought. _Who is this guy anyway? And why do I feel like I know him from somewhere?_


	5. Chapter 5: The Ultimate Clone Technique!

Naruto took one look at Sakura and frowned.

"You look live you've been in a battle," he said.

"We have been," Sakura replied. "Come on." Without waiting for a reply she started running along the Temple's perimeter, the fastest route they could take south without interrupting the other monks at the Temple.

"We?" Naruto asked as he caught up with her. "What has happened exactly? I've only been gone for a couple of hours."

"Right after you left," Sakura reported, "we got word from some monk scouts that a clan village near here, by the Fire Country border, was under attack. Yamato-taichou offered our assistance so Yamato-taichou, Sai and I accompanied two monk squads to the village to investigate."

"The Kohaku village?" Naruto guessed.

"_Hai_. When we got there the whole village had already been massacred, down to the last man, woman and child." Sakura paused to give Naruto time to react but her former team mate did not. He simply ran beside her, his face an impassive mask. She continued. "As we arrived the perpetrators were leaving. It was Furido and his unit. We engaged them in combat and lost. If it hadn't been for your information we would have likely been killed. The strategist kunoichi, Fuen, changed the entire landscape and we were ambushed. We faked our deaths and with the help of your shadow clone we were able to escape the scene without being noticed. During the fight Sai was grievously wounded but I was able to heal him. It will still take him a week or so to completely heal, so for now he is out of commission, which reduces our unit's members from four to two."

"I see," Naruto replied. "What was my shadow clone doing there?" Naruto asked puzzled.

"The enemy's base of operations was the mountain overlooking Kohaku village. Your shadow clone had already infiltrated the hideout but Furido must be the paranoid type because there were no documents to retrieve. After our brief battle your shadow clone set off after Furido in order to learn more."

"Understood. Why did you call me back, then, if the situation is under control?"

"Yamato-taichou is recruiting you onto the squad until further notice. We need the manpower. Also Chiriku-sama, the abbot of this Temple, would like to speak to you about … about…"

"My mother?" Naruto said.

"Yes," Sakura replied. "He wishes to talk to you about your mother. Apparently Konoha's Council denied him access to you for some unspecified reason."

"They were fearful he would take me away," Naruto replied.

"Take you away?" Sakura asked. "Why would he do that?"

"Chiriku-sama was still a member of the Twelve Guardian Ninja at that time and had our Daimyo's ear. As Uzumaki Kushina's friend and team mate he could file to be my guardian and take me away from Konoha, which would upset the Council to no end. So they probably denied him access so that wouldn't happen, and with Chiriku-sama's duties as the Daimyo's bodyguard he didn't exactly have the time to run around Konoha appealing his case."

"But why wouldn't the Council want you to be adopted?" Sakura asked even more confused.

"I…" Naruto started to reply before he shook his head and just kept silent.

Sakura looked at him for a few seconds before it became apparent Naruto wasn't going to speak on the subject anymore.

"You've really grown, Naruto," she said with a faint smile.

"Thanks," Naruto said with a grin. "But you haven't seen anything yet! Wait till you see my new perverted ninjutsu!"

"Your new what?" Sakura asked in a dangerous tone of voice.

"… Er … I meant to say wait till you see my new techniques!" Naruto quickly back-paddled.

"That's what I thought," Sakura said. _So different and yet still the same_, Sakura mused to herself with an inward smile. "What's up with your shadow clone?" Sakura asked. The question had been bugging her ever since she had seen it in action again Fuka, the other kunoichi in Furido's unit.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked with a frown.

"Well, why hasn't it dispelled yet? How can it endure such intense combat without being destroyed?"

"Oh, that," Naruto said with a smile. "I'm probably one of the few ninja who has taken it so far."

"Taken what so far?" Sakura asked.

"Shadow Clone research," Naruto replied simply. "It's the method I used to train while I was away from Konoha. As you probably know any information and experience a shadow clone gets is transmitted to the user of the technique when it is destroyed. Because of my large chakra capacity I can use the Shadow Clone technique numerous times in any given time period, whereas ninja like Kakashi-sensei can only use it once or twice without weakening themselves in a fight. I have gotten a lot stronger than I would have been able to otherwise thanks to that technique, going through several decades' worth of training at the very least. I really should write a letter of thanks to Mizuki-sensei one of these days.

Anyway, I realised early on that a shadow clone is just a mock body made out of chakra. There is a brain and a chakra circulatory system, which accounts for the shadow clone's ability to act independently and use ninjutsu, but all the other organs and tissues are not functional, which is why shadow clones do not actually need to breath or sleep, making them the ideal spying technique. But this also makes them weak. When attacked and, for example, slashed across the arm, the body of chakra that makes up a shadow clone is compromised and the chakra starts leaking. When the chakra starts leaking the shadow clone is destroyed because the chakra has lost cohesion. I researched how the technique works down to the very last atom, and then researched human physiology and anatomy, medicine, biomedical science, chakra manipulation and the chakra circulatory system, e.t.c. If it hadn't been for the **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu** I would never have been able to get through that much information and research material in the time frame I had. It's also why I know a bit about how medical ninjutsu, although I can't say I can use it myself. I could never actually be a medical ninja anyway. It requires constant chakra control and concentration I don't think I could keep up. But I digress.

After my research, after I had gathered all the necessary tools and information, I invented my own version of the Shadow Clone technique. Because everything is anatomically correct the shadow clone is effectively a fully cloned human body and therefore has reduced chances of being dispelled. And thanks to the seal I put on that particular shadow clone you met, the one I sent for reconnaissance, its wellbeing is independent of my own. You could kill me right now and it would still keep operating. I think. I haven't exactly had the opportunity to test that particular theory out. The only way for the clone to be dispelled is if either I undo the technique or it does. It brings a whole new range of possibilities to the table. But as you know the more complex the technique, the bigger the side effects to the user of the technique, and my Shadow Clone technique comes with greater risk and an even bigger headache. Literally. This is because when the shadow clone is dispelled it is no longer simple information I receive. I have to relieve every single thing it has, from any insect bites right down to the last injury. I have to live through what it has, and because of the mental connection even though there are no physical marks on my body, my mind believes I have been injured if the clone has been injured, and because this takes place at the speed of thought I will relieve every second of agony the shadow clone went through while on the outside only a few seconds or minutes will pass. This makes the whole information relay process last a bit more than if it was a normal shadow clone. The first time I tested it out I passed out from the surge of information so now I use it only when absolutely necessary."

"You did all that?" Sakura asked and she was unable to hide her awe.

"It was nothing really," Naruto replied with a shy smile, all of the sudden embarrassed. "To be honest with you if it hadn't been for Hinata-hime and her Byakugan I would never have achieved half the things I have. Her insight really helped me a lot."

_Hinata-hime, eh? _Sakura thought and she instantly shocked by the feeling those words engendered. _This isn't the time!_ She told herself sternly.

"But it is still amazing, Naruto. Your technique could be the next biggest thing in espionage! ANBU would give anything for you to teach them! I know they would."

"You think so?" Naruto laughed.

"I know so," Sakura replied with a smile. "Although those side effects might give some people pause for thought. From the sounds of things this technique, if it is researched properly and can be forced onto someone, can be used for interrogation purposes as well, and there would never be a single mark on the target. That's slightly scary."

Naruto nodded slowly, his eyes suddenly far away. _Now that's interesting…_ Naruto thought.

"We're here," Sakura finally said because Naruto looked so lost in thought she was worried he might not realise.

Naruto blinked and looked around just as both Konoha shinobi landed in front of Chiriku.

"Chiriku-sama," they both greeted the abbot.

The monk bowed in reply. "This way please, Naruto-kun," Chiriku said.

"I'll see you soon, Sakura-chan," Naruto said with a small wave without looking back.

"Goodbye, Naruto-kun," Sakura whispered softly. She knew that whatever happened during Naruto's conversation with the abbot would change things. Whether it was for the better or worse was still to be determined, though.

XXX

Chiriku sat on one side of the table with his legs folded underneath him while Naruto sat on the other. On the table in between them was a tea set and Chiriku was in the middle of the tea pouring ceremony. After spending a year with Hinata-hime's grandmother Naruto had learnt a lot about ceremonies and formal procedures, and he'd come to love the tea pouring ceremony in particular. The grace with which Chiriku carried himself and the look of peace on the abbot's face was enough to tell Naruto a lot about the former ninja. Chiriku was obviously a focused person who was capable of great strength but also great mercy. Chiriku was also very sharp and intelligent and unlikely to be deceived or misled. He was also an honest man. Naruto smiled inwardly. Whatever he was about to discover would be, from Chiriku's point of view, the whole truth. Chiriku poured Naruto's tea and then poured his own. Naruto picked up his cup but did not drink until Chiriku had, which was a show of respect and propriety on Naruto's part. Chiriku smiled knowingly at Naruto as he sipped his tea. Naruto followed suit.

"You carry yourself with all the formality of the Hyūga," Chiriku commented idly.

"You have sharp eyes and even sharper insight," Naruto replied with a small bow of his head. "I spent a year living with a Hyūga, and she was a stickler for protocol. Or at least she beat it into me. She didn't seem to hold much regard for protocol herself, though, the hypocrite." Naruto smiled as he remembered old lady Hinata.

"It sounds like she was a good person," Chiriku remarked as he noted the peaceable smile on Naruto's lips.

"She was."

"How did she pass away?"

"Old age."

"Ah," Chiriku sighed. "A glorious and desirable death in this world of shinobi. That is how I would like to pass away, too, if I had the choice."

"You sound as if you know how and when you're going to die," Naruto said shrewdly, eyeing the monk suspiciously.

Chiriku laughed. "Why would I wish for such a curse? The mystery is enough for me."

"You didn't answer the question," Naruto pointed out.

"You didn't ask one, dear child," Chiriku said with an innocent smile.

Naruto grumbled before finally letting out a short laugh. "I have been through so much that sometimes I forget I am still a child. I'm just another sixteen year old boy."

"It must be sobering thought, especially after all you have been through," Chiriku mused.

"It is," Naruto replied, "but I'm a Jinchūriki and a shinobi to boot. My path was predetermined from the moment I was born."

Chiriku frowned. "Aren't you the one who defeated that Hyūga prodigy, Neji I think was his name, and said the concept of fate was, and I quote, "bullshit"?"

Naruto laughed, remembering those days. "I stand by what I said," he answered still chuckling. "But I have grown up since then too, and I have witnessed things that in the grand scheme of things just have to be fate. In this world I have discovered that coincidence is a very rare thing. It is why I started believing in a Higher Power. Life itself, from my experience, is one big puzzle, and for those lucky enough to possess the power of insight the puzzle will be that much easier to solve. I finally appreciate the saying that it is not the destination but the journey that matters. In my quest for power and knowledge I have met some amazing people and have changed and _been_ changed by them. My quest is not even one percent complete but I imagine by the time I get to Ero-Sennin's age and have lived a rich and full life as he has, then I will truly be as wise as he is."

"Just by saying that you have shown the beginnings of wisdom," Chiriku complimented gravely. The abbot stared into Naruto's eyes and Naruto started to get a sense of dissociation with the world at large. A soft golden light seemed to be emanating from within Chiriku and Naruto felt more than saw a hand slightly caress his cheek and bestow a benevolent palm on his forehead. The feeling he got was … heavenly… He wished he could feel that way forever. He had been exposed to a life filled with raw and powerful emotions, mainly hatred. The peace he felt was the complete opposite of that, and what's more he sensed that it wasn't coming from him or Chiriku, but some_thing_ else. It was a peace that had been fought for very hard and bred understanding with everything that had yet to experience that peace. It was … heavenly…

Naruto blinked.

He was sitting opposite Chiriku with an empty cup. Naruto had never felt so at peace with the world and wished that feeling would never stop but they had drunk their tea and it was now time to get down to business. Naruto carefully and deliberately put his cup down and bowed his head to Chiriku in thanks. Chiriku mimicked him.

"I heard you wished to speak to me regarding my mother," Naruto said.

"I did." Chiriku was silent for a whole minute, his eyes far away. He did not speak for a full two minutes and Naruto was not inclined to interrupt the monk's thoughts. Chiriku would speak when he was ready. Finally Chiriku met Naruto's eyes. "I was in love with your mother, you know."

Naruto blinked. "What?" he asked. It was the most intelligible thing he could utter. The admission had caught him off guard.

Chiriku smiled sadly. "I was in love with Uzumaki Kushina. She was such a … primal person, vigorously alive and highly opinionated. Just like you. And even before I became a monk I was a quiet and reserved man. We were complete opposites, and yet I lost the battle for her heart to a man just like myself. I think it's the most disappointed I have ever been in myself. She was … a unique and precious person."

Naruto didn't interrupt, and to be honest he didn't think he could. Despite how much he tried to control his expression he couldn't prevent the look of absolute hunger from showing in his eyes. Chiriku, who had been talking of his past love not out of nostalgia but to test the young shinobi, felt his heart ache a little. _You crave the smallest bits of information about a mother you never knew like a desert wanderer craves water_.

"Your mother was the nicest person I ever met. Like you, her view of the ninja world was at times a bit too idealistic and with more naivety than would be expected from a ninja, but like you I think it is what made her a powerful soul to contend with. As you no doubt know there are a lot of pessimistic ninja out there who have lost faith in human beings, but you haven't. That, I sense, will be your greatest weapon. Never give in to despair."

"I won't," Naruto swore.

"Good. Now I have a gift for you. Well, it's more like your inheritance."

"Inheritance?" Naruto asked surprised.

"Yes." Chiriku formed a couple of seals and there was an explosion of smoke in front of him. When it cleared there was a large rectangular wooden chest inlaid with beautiful carvings of mythical creatures. Naruto's eyes widened as he made out all of the Tailed Beasts amongst the carvings. The Nine Tailed Fox was the most prominent of all the creatures with its mouth being the keyhole. Its eyes were rubies that managed to capture the hatred and bloodlust of the actual creature. Naruto had to fight hard not to put his hand over his navel.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I received this package by messenger toad the same day the Nine Tails attacked Konoha."

"Messenger toad?" Naruto said sharply, looking into Chiriku's eyes.

"Yes," Chiriku replied. "The Fourth Hokage sent it just before he went into battle with the Kyuubi. The toad explained that the Fourth had intercepted your mother's messenger summoning because it was in danger of being intercepted by the enemy. "

"I see," Naruto said frowning. "What enemy exactly? The Kyuubi is a natural disaster, albeit a conscious one. It was the only enemy."

"Exactly," Chiriku answered and Naruto' frown deepened. "I can see it in your eyes," Chiriku continued. "You didn't believe what you just said; the Kyuubi wasn't a natural disaster when it attacked Konoha. I am guessing you have been investigating the incident?" Chiriku's eyes narrowed momentarily before he regarded Naruto with raised brows.

"You know, don't you?" he asked with a slight note of surprise.

"Know what?" Naruto asked neutrally.

"You know that before you it was your mother that was the Kyuubi no Yoko's container."

Naruto didn't reply.

"There are only three people left alive from Konoha who knew that Uzumaki Kushina was the Kyuubi's host before you, although I think it is safe to assume Danzō of Root was aware of that fact as well. I know that at this point in time these three people have not and would not tell you of the Kyuubi's history. The only way you could know is if you investigated yourself, and the only place in the world you could find out such information is with your clan…" Chiriku's eyes widened. "The Uzumaki Clan still lives?" he asked in a whisper.

"Barely," Naruto replied softly. "I was just in time to stop the Kazama from annihilating each other. The Uzumaki and the Boufuu have been at war since the cataclysm, each blaming the other for the destruction of their country. I was the one who managed to make them see that there were other elements at work, along with Hiarashi-sensei's help."

"Other elements?" Chiriku queried.

"Most probably the same elements that were later responsible for the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha. I am still gathering information but it's a slow process, made even slower by the fact no one has any clue as to who or what organisation is behind these events."

"But you have an idea," Chiriku stated with certainty.

"The exact identity eludes me," Naruto said, "but I have successfully managed to link seemingly random events in virtually every country on this continent over the past eighty years."

"Eighty years!" Chiriku's reaction this time was one of blatant shocked.

"Most of these events seemed to serve no purpose except to create death and destruction," Naruto continued, "but as some of us know where there is a confluence of negative energy and emotion certain feats are possible. An example would be the formation of the Kyuubi. All these events shared the same method of operation, and if it weren't for some key members I would never have been able to divine any of this information."

Chiriku was silent for a long time before he finally spoke again. "There is a war coming."

"Undoubtedly," Naruto agreed. "The fact that it has been decades in the making is quite frightening. It will most probably make the Great Ninja Wars look like children's squabbles."

"Who knows?" Chiriku asked.

"Aside from you, only Ero-Sennin, Hinata-hime and the Great Toad Sage on Myōbokuzan know."

"And why have you told me?"

"If the scant information I have discovered is any indication, the Temple of Fire will be attacked. I don't know when, but I believe it is soon. The signs are everywhere; Akatsuki if finally and publicly on the move. There are tensions between Iwagakure, Kumogakure and Kirigakure, which happen to be the most militant-minded and aggressive of the Five Great Ninja Countries. It could literally take anything to spark up another Great Ninja War. There are other, lesser, signs that have been observed. _Hi no Tera_ is a major component of Fire Country's military strength. The Temple doesn't get involved in wars lightly, but something of this magnitude would necessitate its participation. With the number of sōhei here and the quality of their shinobi skills the Temple is effectively a second ninja village, something unique to this country. It's what has always been the trump card in previous wars when the country itself was threatened. A person or organisation long sighted enough and intelligent enough to have orchestrated everything I have discovered so far will know this and therefore will make sure to take you out of play before making any overt moves. Your survival, and the temple's, is vital. The enemy, whoever it is, needs to be stopped before the situation escalates any further."

"You have a plan?"

"Yes," Naruto said looking at the abbot steadily. "When the Temple is attacked, all the monks must die."

Chiriku remained utterly still and it seemed to Naruto as if he was looking at a statue and not a human. After a whole minute life finally returned to Chiriku's eyes and there was an almost imperceptible smile on his lips.

"I understand."

XXX

"He's certainly surprising, isn't he?" Yamato said as he sat down next to Sakura.

Sakura looked at her captain and smiled. "Yes he has. It kind of makes me sad, to be honest. You should have seen him back in our Genin days. He was the stupidest, most unpredictable and downright annoying and frustrating person you could ever hope to meet. But for all that he possessed the kind of determination and brilliance in battle that most ninja have to work to attain."

"That about sums up the boy I was told about," Yamato commented.

"No, he not a boy anymore," Sakura said with a note of realisation. "He's grown up. He might act like the goof off he was before but I can see he's different. It's in his eyes."

"Yes, he's certainly grown," Yamato agreed.

"Just like a man!" Sakura said.

"What do you mean?" Yamato asked.

"All you're thinking about is his ninjutsu and physical capabilities. I'm talking about his maturity as a person … as a man. He's no longer a child, despite how he acts. That's saying a lot where Naruto is concerned."

"It sounds like you're quite attached to him."

"I am," Sakura said with a smile. "He's someone precious to me, dependable no matter what. I think that I actually-"

"Yamato-taichou!"

Both Sakura and Yamato started at the shout. They turned round and saw Naruto running towards them. As they stood up he halted in front of them, panting.

"What is it?" Sakura asked.

"Furido is going to attack Konoha!" Naruto gasped out.

"What!" Yamato asked.

"One of the shadow clones I sent out to shadow Furido and his gang just reported back to me. It intercepted a message between Furido and Fuen. He was asking her if she had everything ready for the attack. When the shadow clone dispelled itself the other three shadow clones rushed to locate all the other members of the enemy's unit. They also intercepted messages pertaining to details consistent with a large scale attack. If I understand correctly Furido plans to attack Konoha within the week."

"We need to rush back to Konoha," Yamato said. "The Hokage needs to be warned."

"You and Sakura go on ahead," Naruto said. "I can follow behind with Hinata-hime and Sai-kun. I'll roughly be a couple of hours behind you."

Yamato hesitated for a second before he nodded. "Come on, Sakura-san!"


End file.
